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THE   BEACON  BIOGRAPHIES 

EDITED    BY 

M.   A.    DeWOLFE  HOWE 


SAM    HOUSTON 

BY 

SARAH    BARNWELL    ELLIOTT 


-4^)/i,^u^a:/i>m^y  yni<///..Mii^7iri:^-  P'^'»rfr"ny: 


-THE. 


<:i^y^(^fl^'p(^i§^, 


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PHBLISHUD  UTS' 


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(Smull. U/ttj/i/i/rfK-i^p/tm/  ^ 


K0#*T05C 


SAM      HOUSTON 


SARAH   BARNWELL   ELLIOTT 


BOSTON 

SMALL,   MAYNARD  &  COMPANY 

MDCCCC 


Copyright^  I  poo 
By  Small^  Maynard  l^  Company 

{^Incorporated) 


Entered  at  Stationers'  Hall 


Press  of 
George  H.  Ellis^  Boston 


The  i^liotogravure  used  as  a  frontispiece 
to  this  volume  is  from  a  photograph  by 
RocJcwood  of  a  poHrait  in  the  possession  of 
Dr.  Warren  Coleman^  New  YorTc. 


To  the  memory  of  my  brother 

The  Eight  Reverend 

ROBERT   WOODWARD  BARNWELL 
ELLIOTT, 

A  faithful  friend  and  Bishop  of  Texas. 


PREFACE. 

The  life  of  General  Houston  ivas  sofuU, 
80  varied,  so  interwoven  icith  public  affairs, 
that  it  has  been  exceedingly  difficult  to  give 
in  such  small  space  even  an  outline  of  his 
career.  In  this  sJcetch  I  have  quoted 
freely  from  the  many  loriters  icho  have  so 
ably  handled  this  period  of  history.  But 
especially  must  I  achioicledge  my  obliga- 
tions to  the  histories  of  Texas  by  Mr.  II. 
Yoakum  and  Mr.  John  Henry  Brown;  to 
the  most  admirable  and  careful  study, 
^'Sam  Houston  and  the  War  of  Indepen- 
dence in  Texas, ' '  by  Mr.  Alfred  21.  Will- 
iams, a  work  so  complete  in  its  scope  that 
all  who  follow  must  turn  to  him  for  help; 
also  to  the  '  ^  Beminisccjices  ^  ^  of  Mr.  Ashbel 
Smith,  General  Houston's  own  testimony 
in  Mr.  Crane'' s  Life  of  him,  and  Mr.  Henry 
Bruce' s  biography  in  ^^  The  Makers  of 
America  ^^  series.  These,  with  notes  sent 
me  by  Judge  John  M.  Lea,  have  been  my 
chief  heljys;  and  I  am  glad  to  thank  them  as 
publicly  as  may  be. 


X  PREFACE 

It  gives  me  great  pleasure,  particularly 
to  tJmnJc  Judge  John  M.  Lea,  of  Nashville, 
for  careful  and  valuable  information  which 
I  could  not  have  found  elsewhere,  since 
it  was  his  personal  knowledge  of  the  sub- 
ject in  hand;  General  George  Gillespie, 
U.S.A.,  Dr.  Wa7Ten  Coleman,  and  Mrs. 
Gertrude  Wilson,  for  information  throwi7ig 
light  on  General  Houstoii' s  character;  Mr. 
Elihu  Chauncey,  for  valuable  papers  ;  and, 
once  more,  Judge  Lea,  for  letters  from  the 
^^ Tennessee  Historical  Magazine.'''' 

It  is  very  seldom  that  a  question  has  but 
one  answer.  And  all  the  questions  concern- 
ing General  Houston  and  his  time  seem  to 
have  had  not  only  many  answers,  but  many 
vexed  answers.  If  Houston  had  failed  at 
San  Jachito,  he  undoubtedly  would  have 
been  labelled  *■  'Filibuster ' '  ;  and  yet  a  care- 
ful examination  by  no  means  proves  this. 
He  was  what  is  now  called  an  '^ Expan- 
sionist,^'' and  the  battle  of  expansion  being 
fought  to-day  teas  fought  just  as  violently 
in  1803,  1806,  1819,  18Jf.j^;  and  the  same 


PEEFACE  xi 

oolitical  obloquy  has  been  in  each  case  the 
crown  of  the  eocpansionist 

The  campaign  ending  in  the  battle  of 
San  Jacinto  icas  imthoiit  strategic  compli- 
"MtionSy  the  plan  of  the  only  battle  extremely 
umple;  but  the  conclusion  stamps  both  as 
wise.  '  ^  The  most  accomplished  soldier 
could  have  done  no  more.''''  It  has  been 
'jood,  also,  to  realize  that  in  the  midst  of 
financial  opportunity  and  suggestion  —  I 
will  not  dishonor  General  Houston  by  say- 
ing temptation  —  a  poor  maUy  as  Houston 
was,  could  remain  so  absolutely  clean- 
handed. He  spent  and  was  spent  freely; 
but  he  left  the  public  service  in  1861  as 
voor  as  when  he  entered  it  as  a  young  sol- 
dier in  1813.     A  fair  crown  for  a  long  life. 

SAEAH  BAKNWELL  ELLIOTT. 
ISbwakee,  Tenn. 


CHEOXOLOGY. 

1793 
March  2.  Sam    Houston    was    born    in 
Eockbridge  County,  Virginia. 

1806 
Death    of    father.      Family    moved    to 
Tennessee. 

1813 
Enlisted      in      United     States     Army. 
Wounded  in  battle  of  Horseshoe  Bend. 
Attracted    notice    of    General    Andrew 
Jackson.     Promoted  third  lieutenant. 

1811 
Eetained  in  First  Infantry,  when  army 
was  reduced. 

1816 
Detailed  for  extra  duty  as  sub -agent  to 
Cherokee   Indians.     Took  delegation  of 
Indians  to  Washington. 

1818 
March  1.  Promoted  first  lieutenant. 
May  17,  Eesigned. 


xiv  CHRONOLOGY 

1818  (continued) 
Began  study  of  law  in  Nashville,  Ten- 
nessee. 

1819 
Opened  law  office  in  Lebanon,  Tennes- 
see. 

Elected    district    attorney  in    October. 
Returned  to  Nashville. 

1820 
Appointed     adjutant-general     State    of 
Tennessee,  with  rank  of  colonel. 

1821 
Elected  major-general  of  State  troops. 

1823 
Elected  representative  to  Congress. 

1825 
Re-elected  to  Congress. 

1826 
Fought    duel     with     General     William 
Wliite. 

1827 
Elected  governor  of  Tennessee. 


CHROXOLOGY  xv 

1829 
Candidate    for  second   term.      Married 
Miss  Eliza  Allen  in  January.     Resigned 
governorship  in  April.      Joined  Chero- 
kee Indians  in  Arkansas. 

1830 
Went  to  Washington  in  behalf  of  Ind- 
ians.    Made  application  to  supply  Ind- 
ian rations. 

1831 
Issued  proclamation  to  all  his  slanderers. 

1832 
Returned  to  Washington.  Caned  Stan- 
berry.  Trial.  Went  to  Texas  in  De- 
cember on  mission  from  President  Jack- 
son to  Comanche  Indians  at  San  Antonio 
de  Bexar. 

1833 
Invited  by  citizens  of  Nacogdoches  to 
remain.     Elected  to  convention  at  San 
Felipe.    Chairman  of  committee  to  draft 
constitution  for  Texas. 


xvi  CHRONOLOGY 

1835 
Revolution  iu  Mexico.     Texas  left  with- 
out government.     Houston  joined  war 
party  in  Nacogdoches.     Offered  resolu- 
tions   in    opposition    to    military  rule. 
Elected     commander-in-chief    in    East 
Texas.     Joined  Austin  at  San  Antonio. 
Left  to  attend  convention.     On  Commit- 
tee of  Declaration  setting  forth  causes  of 
war.     Elected  commander-in-chief. 
December  12.  Issued  proclamation. 
December    25.    Moved    headquarters  to 
Washington  on  the  Brazos.     Appointed 
commissioner  to  treat  with  Indians. 

1836 
Went  to  Goliad.     Sent  Bowie  to  Bexar. 
January  17.  Went  to  Refugio.     Super- 
seded   by  council.      Reported   to  gov- 
ernor. 

March    1.    Convention    met.      Houston 
re-elected  commander-in-chief. 
Went  to  Gonzales.     Retreated    to  the 
Colorado.     Reached  the  Brazos. 
April  12.  Crossed. 


CHROXOLOGY  xvii 

1836  (continued) 
April  19.  Crossed  Buffalo  Bayou  at  Har- 
risburg. 

Ajml     21.     Battle     of     San      Jacinto. 
Wounded. 

Went  to  Kew  Orleans. 
July  5.  Returned  to  Texas. 
Elected  president  of  Texas. 

1837 
Announced   acknowledgment  of  Texan 
independence  to  Congress.     Annexation 
declined  by  United  States. 

1838 
Retired,    leaving    everything    in    good 
order.     Lamar   second    president.     Re- 
versed Houston's  policy. 

1839 
Member  of  Texas  House  of  Representa- 
tives. 

1840 
Married  Miss  Margaret  Moffett  Lea,  of 
Alabama. 


xviii  CHEONOLOGY 

1841 
Ee-elected   president    iu   December  for 
second  term. 

1842 
Eenewed  proposition  for  annexation. 
Mexicans  plunder  San  Antonio.  Extra 
session  of  Congress.  Vetoed  bill  offer- 
ing dictative  powers.  Second  expedi- 
tion from  Mexico.    Sent  army  to  pursue. 

1843 
Annexation  again  declined.     Withdrew 
Texan  minister.     Minister  sent  back  to 
United  States. 

1844 
Last  term  ended.     Eigid  economy  left 
Texas  solvent. 

1845 
Texas  annexed.     Houston  elected  sena- 
tor to  the  United  States. 

1846 
March  30.  Took  his  seat  as  senator. 

1854 
Became  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church. 


CHEOXOLOGY  xix 

1856 
Spoken  of  for  President. 

1857 
Defeated  for  re-election  to  Senate.     De- 
feated for  governor  of  Texas. 

1859 
February  26.  Delivered  his  last  speech  in 
Senate. 

Elected  governor  of  Texas. 
December  21.  Inangnrated. 

1861 
Refused    to    take   oath   to   Confederate 
government  when  Texas  seceded.     De- 
posed.    Protested,  and  retired  with  his 
family  to  Independence,  Texas. 

1863 
July  26.    Sam  Houston  died  at  Hunts - 
ville,  Texas. 


SAM    HOUSTON 


SAM   HOUSTON. 
I. 

There  is  pathos  iu  the  picture  of 
Aaron  Burr  —  decrepit,  ostracized,  dying 
— reading  of  the  victory  of  San  Jacinto, 
and  crying  out,  ^'1  was  thirty  years  too 
soon ! ' ' 

The  dream  of  that  unexplored,  mys- 
terious, alluring  ^^  South-western  Em- 
pire ' '  was  a  fatal  one.  For  it  La  Salle 
had  been  murdered,  John  Sevier  had 
been  suspected,  Aaron  Burr  had  been 
ruined.  Sam  Houston,  a  man  of  his 
time  and  environment,  whose  imagina- 
tion had  been  chastened  j  a  man  who 
was  willing  to  fight  the  devil  with  fire  ; 
who  worked  warily  and  shrewdly  with 
whatever  material  came  to  hand;  who 
understood  perfectly  the  people  he  was 
determined  to  lead,  and  led  them  suc- 
cessfully —  he  it  was  who  grasped  at  last 
the  illusive  prize,  grasped  it,  and  held 
it,  until,  an  old  man,  his  people  called 


2  SAM   HOUSTON 

to  him  from  out  the  council  chamber  — 
^^Sam  Houston!  Sam  Houston!  Sam 
Houston  !  "  —  to  lead  the  country  he  had 
moulded,  out  from  the  position  he  had 
won  for  her,  into  the  untried  paths  of 
Secession.  For  once  he  did  not  answer 
his  people,  and  they  left  him. 

At  the  time  of  Burr's  failure,  1806, 
the  widowed  mother  of  Sam  Houston 
was  moving  from  Virginia  to  Tennessee, 
where  Sam,  just  thirteen  yeai^  of  age, 
began  his  turbulent  career  by  running 
away  to  the  Indians.  The  family  was 
of  Scotch  descent,  and  had  the  right  to 
a  coat- of- arms.  John  Houston  settled 
first  in  Philadelphia,  moving  later  to 
Virginia.  Samuel,  grandson  of  John, 
married  Elizabeth  Paxton,  and  served 
in  the  Eevolution.  He  dying  in  1806, 
his  widow  sold  the  Virginia  farm,  and 
with  her  children  moved  down  to  the 
border  State  of  Tennessee.  Here  Sam, 
a  country  boy,  as  other  country  boys, 
had  few  advantages ;  and  these  he  put 


SAM   HOUSTON  3 

aside  in  favor  of  the  Cherokee  Indians^ 
who  lived  about  eight  miles  from  his 
home.  When  his  elder  brothers  found 
him,  he  declined  to  return  with  them ; 
and  it  was  not  until  his  clothes  were 
worn  out  that  he  came  back  to  his 
mother  to  be  refitted.  After  this  he 
divided  his  time  between  his  home  and 
the  Indians,  until,  finding  himself  in 
debt,  he  opened  a  school  in  the  white 
settlement,  and  not  only  succeeded  as  a 
schoolmaster,  but  raised  the  tuition  from 
six  to  eight  dollars  a  year,  paid  in  equal 
amounts  of  ^^corn,  money,  and  varie- 
gated cotton  cloth. ' '  Unfortunately,  the 
curriculum  of  this  school  has  not  been 
preserved. 

In  1813  Houston  enlisted  in  the  United 
States  army,  and  served  under  Andrew 
Jackson  against  the  Creek  Indians.  His 
fine  courage  in  the  battle  of  Horseshoe 
Bend  brought  him  to  the  notice  of  Jack- 
son. A  comrade,  trying  to  scale  a  stock- 
ade, was  shot.     Houston  took  his  place, 


4  SAM   HOUSTON 

and  was  the  first  over.  He  received  an 
arrow  in  the  thigh,  which  he  could  not 
pull  out.  A  companion  trying  and  fail- 
ing twice,  Houston  cried,  ^^If  you  don't 
do  it,  I'll  kill  you!"  The  third  pull 
brought  it.  The  Indians,  driven  to  a 
stand  in  an  underground  intrenchment, 
had  to  be  unearthed.  Again  Houston 
made  a  reckless  dash.  Down  the  nar- 
row entrance  he  charged,  and  fell  with 
two  bullets  in  his  shoulder,  one  ranging 
round  into  his  back.  Nobody  had  fol- 
lowed, and  he  was  dragged  away  as 
mortally  wounded. 

Thought  to  be  dying,  his  wounds  re- 
ceived little  attention  ;  and  he  was  cared 
for  chiefly  by  his  fellow- ofiScers,  reach- 
ing his  mother's  home  nearly  two  months 
after  the  battle,  so  worn  that  she  scarcely 
recognized  him.  \Vhen  the  army  was 
reduced  to  a  peace  footing,  Houston  was 
retained,  having  been  promoted  second 
lieutenant. 

In  November,  1816,  he  was  detailed 


SAM   HOUSTON  5 

on  extra  duty  as  sub- agent  to  his  old 
friends,  the  Cherokee  Indians.  I  am 
so  fortunate  as  to  be  in  receipt  of  private 
letters  written  from  personal  knowledge ; 
from  these  I  quote,  and  shall  quote  here- 
after. ^^He  was  very  popular  with  the 
Indians,  and  became  a  great  favorite 
with  chief  Jolly,  who  lived  on  the  large 
island  at  the  junction  of  the  Hiwassee 
and  Tennessee  Eivers,  now  known  as 
^Jolly's  Island.'"  During  this  winter 
Houston  conducted  a  delegation  to 
Washington.  While  sub-agent,  he  had 
tried  to  stop  the  smuggling  of  African 
negroes  from  Spanish  Florida  into  the 
border  settlements.  When  he  arrived 
in  Washington,  he  found  himself  ac- 
cused of  complicity  in  this  trade.  But 
his  first  offence  was  that,  being  an  offi- 
cer on  duty,  he  appeared  before  the 
Secretary  of  War,  Mr.  Calhoun,  in  Ind- 
ian costume.  For  this  he  was  repri- 
manded. For  the  other  charges  he  came 
before  President  Monroe  and  Mr.  Cal- 


6  SAM   HOUSTON 

houn,  and  successfully  cleared  himself. 
But  his  treatment  had  angered  him ; 
and,  after  bringing  his  Indians  home 
again,  he  resigned  from  the  army,  hav- 
ing just  been  promoted  first  lieutenant. 

It  was  May,  1818,  that,  having  been 
a  ^^ first-rate  soldier,"  he  resigned,  and 
went  to  Nashville  to  study  law.  At  the 
end  of  six  months  he  passed  the  required 
examinations,  and  began  to  practise  in 
Lebanon,  a  town  near  Nashville.  He 
rented  an  office  for  one  dollar  a  month 
from  Mr.  Golladay,  merchant  and  post- 
master, who  also  credited  him  for  clothes 
and  postage,  and  ^  ^  recommended  him  to 
his  friends.''  Houston's  bad  health,  be- 
cause of  his  wounds,  had  consumed  his 
army  pay,  and  he  was  in  debt  j  but  he 
so  gained  favor  in  Lebanon  that  within 
the  year  he  had  i)aid  all  that  he  owed, 
and  in  October,  1819,  was  free  to  return 
to  Nashville,  where  he  had  been  elected 
district  attorney. 

Dramatic  entries  and  exits  seemed  to 


SAM   HOUSTON  7 

be  characteristic  of  Houston.  So  at  Leb- 
anon, Mr.  Bruce  tells  us,  he  mounted 
the  court-house  steps  to  say  good-by. 
'^  Gentlemen, "  he  began,  ^^the  time  has 
come  when  I  must  bid  you  farewell. 
Although  duty  calls  me  away,  yet  I 
must  confess  that  it  is  with  feelings  of 
sincere  regret  that  I  leave  you.  I  shall 
ever  remember  with  emotions  of  grati- 
tude the  kindness  which  I  received  at 
your  hands.  I  came  among  you  poor 
and  a  stranger,  and  you  extended  the 
hand  of  welcome  and  received  me 
kindly.  I  was  naked,  and  ye  clothed 
me.  I  was  hungry,  and  ye  fed  me.  I 
was  athirst,  and  ye  gave  me  drink." 
The  people  were  moved  to  tears.  But 
Houston  did  not  forget ;  for  in  1853, 
when  the  son  of  GoUaday  fell  ill  while 
travelling  in  Texas,  Houston  returned 
all  the  long-ago  kindness. 

From  the  battle  of  Horseshoe  Bend  to 
the  end  of  Jackson's  life,  he  was  Hous- 
ton's friend  and  i)atron  ;  and,  as  Jackson 


8  SAM   HOUSTON 

never  made  a  secret  of  either  his  friend- 
ship or  his  enmity,  Tennessee  soon  knew 
his  estimate  of  Houston.  But  of  and 
for  himself  Houston  gained  adherents. 
^^He  made  himself  very  popular  with 
boys,  young  men,  poor  people,  and  ser- 
vants,—  at  least,  those  at  m_y  father's 
house, ' '  says  my  correspondent,  ^  ^  deemed 
it  an  honor  to  wait  upon  him."  His 
popularity  is  clearly  attested  by  his 
rapid  rise  :  1819,  elected  district  attor- 
ney ;  1820,  ai)pointed  adjutant-general 
of  Tennessee ;  1821,  elected  major-gen- 
eral of  State  troops ;  1823,  elected  rej)- 
resentative  to  Congress,  and  in  1825 
re-elected.  It  was  during  this  last  term 
that  Houston  fought  his  only  duel. 

The  postmaster  in  Nashville,  Mr. 
Erwin,  was  an  Adams- Clay  appointee, 
which  condemned  him  in  the  eyes  of  the 
Jacksonians  j  and  Houston's  criticisms 
were  unsparing.  Erwin  challenged 
him,  sending  his  message  by  ^'John 
Smith,  or  John  Smith  T.,  as  he  signed 


SAM   HOUSTON  9 

himself,  a  duellist  who  had  killed  several 
men,  —  of  a  fine  family,  and  a  wealthy 
man.  Houston,  on  receiving  the  chal- 
lenge in  front  of  the  Nashville  Inn, 
cast  it  to  the  ground,  and  put  his  foot 
upon  it.  To  the  surprise  of  every  one, 
Smith  made  no  assault  ujDon  him. 
Many  people  —  as  Erwin  was  a  gentle- 
man—  thought  Houston's  conduct  im- 
proper. The  subject  was  discussed 
about  the  town ;  and  one  man,  General 
White,  remarked  that  he  had  nothing 
to  do  with  the  dif&culty,  but  he  thought 
that  Erwin  had  not  been  treated  with 
courtesy.  Busybodies  began  to  talk, 
and  the  remark  came  to  Houston's  ears 
that  ^  Houston  would  pass  by  what 
White  had  said  about  him.'  The  con- 
sequence was  that  Houston  called  upon 
^^Tiite,  and  said,  'You  criticised  my 
conduct :  any  message  from  you  will 
receive  my  attention.'  A  challenge 
followed."  An  ineffectual  effort  was 
made  to  arrest  them,  Houston  escaping 


10  SAM  housto:n" 

to  the  house  of  a  friend  in  the  next 
county.  Here  he  spent  the  week  pre- 
ceding the  duel  in  practising  with  his 
pistol.  In  the  Field  of  Honor,  by  Mr. 
Truman,  we  find  these  anecdotes  of 
his  duelling.  The  friend  with  whom 
he  took  refuge  ^ '  owned  two  small  dogs, 
which  he  had  named  respectively  An- 
drew Jackson  and  Tliomas  Benton,  and 
who  amused  their  master  and  his 
guest  by  their  frequent  battles,  Houston 
always  betting  on  Andrew  Jackson. 
On  the  morning  of  the  duel,  which  was 
to  be  fought  at  sunrise,  Houston  was 
wakened  before  day  by  Andrew  Jack- 
son barking  under  his  window.  He  got 
up  at  once,  and  began  to  mould  bullets. 
As  the  first  one  dropped  from  the 
mould,  a  chicken  cock  crowed.  These 
two  things  he  esteemed  good  omens,  and 
marked  that  special  bullet  on  one  side 
for  the  dog,  on  the  other  for  the  chicken 
cock,  and  determined  that  that  should 
be  the  bullet  for  his  first  fire. ' '     White 


SAM   HOUSTON  11 

fell  at  this  ^^ first  fire/'  shot  through 
the  body  —  not  mortally  —  at  the  hip. 
Houston  started  for  the  State  line, 
which  was  near ;  but,  '^Tiite  calling 
him,  he  returned,  and,  raising  his  an- 
tagonist, expressed  great  sorrow  for 
what  he  had  done. 

Houston  declined  many  challenges 
during  his  life,  which  says  more  than 
anything  else  can  for  the  estimation  in 
which  he  was  held,  not  only  in  Tennes- 
see, but  in  the  wild  country  that  Texas 
was  in  his  day.  He  said  once,  in  ex- 
plaining his  declination  of  a  certain 
challenge  :  '^  I  objected  to  it  first  on  the 
ground  that  we  were  to  have  but  one 
second,  and  that  the  man  who  had 
brought  the  challenge.  Another  ob- 
jection was  that  we  were  to  meet  on 
Sunday  morning,  and  I  did  not  think 
that  anything  was  to  be  made  by  fight- 
ing on  that  day.  The  third  objection 
was  that  he  was  a  good  Christian,  and 
had  had  his  child  baptized  the  Sunday 


12  SAM   HOUSTON 

before.  Tlie  fourth  was  that  I  never 
fought  down  hill,  and  I  never  would.  I 
must  at  least  make  character,  if  I  did 
not  lose  my  life  ;  and  therefore  I  notified 
him  that  way.  .  .  .  And  I  will  avail  my- 
self of  this  occasion  to  declare  that  I 
never  made  a  quarrel  with  a  mortal 
man  on  earth ;  nor  will  I  ever  do  any- 
thing to  originate  a  quarrel  with  any 
man,  woman,  or  child  living.  If  they 
quarrel  with  me,  it  is  their  privilege ; 
but  I  shall  try  to  take  every  care  that  they 
do  me  no  harm.^^ 

Another  challenge  he  read,  then, 
handing  it  to  his  secretary,  said,  ^^  In- 
dorse this  number  fourteen,  and  file  it 
away.'^ 


IL 

His  five  years  in  the  army  and  his 
two  terms  in  Congress,  where  ^' there 
were  giants  in  those  days/'  had  taught 
Houston  many  things.  ^^He  was  a 
splendid  specimen  of  physical  manhood. 
Tall,  dignified,  slow  of  speech,  but  ready 
in  command  of  language,  graceful  in 
manner,  all  his  actions  indicated  that 
he  had  a  good  opinion  of  himself ;  and  I 
cannot  say  that  he  did  not  sometimes 
have  an  air  that  was  somewhat  swagger- 
ing." Added  to  this,  the  duel  with 
\yhite,  having  as  it  did  the  imprimatur 
of  Andrew  Jackson,  who,  it  was  known, 
had  given  him  advice  as  to  methods, 
increased  his  popularity;  and  in  1827 
Tennessee  elected  him  governor.  He 
gave  entire  satisfaction  both  as  an  ad- 
ministrator and  as  a  man,  and  the  sec- 
ond term  was  practically  his  when  the 
unhappy  catastrophe  which  wrecked  his 
life  came  to  him. 


14  SAM   HOUSTON 

In  January,  1829,  lie  married  Miss 
Eliza  Allen.  ^^But  scarcely  was  the 
honeymoon  over,"  when  Mrs.  Houston 
returned  to  her  parents,  and  Houston 
sent  in  his  resignation  as  governor.  The 
shock  was  great ;  and,  no  reason  being 
given,  the  world  of  Tennessee  was  in- 
stantly rent  into  factions.  Mrs.  Houston' s 
family  were  prominent ;  and  Houston's 
political  enemies  took  this  opportunity 
to  attack  him,  especially  as  he  made 
no  defence,  his  only  word  being  :  ^^  Eliza 
stands  acquitted  by  me.  I  have  received 
her  as  a  virtuous,  chaste  wife  5  and  as 
such  I  pray  God  I  may  ever  regard 
her.''  And  it  was  not  until  after  his 
death  that  his  widow  in  Texas  gave 
to  the  world  the  explanation  received 
from  him,  that  he  had  discovered 
that  his  wife  loved  some  one  else.  It 
is  said  that  he  married  her  knowing 
that  she  did  not  love  him,  but  that  he 
did  not  know  that  she  loved  elsewhere. 
Houston   had  been  over- confident,    the 


SAM   HOUSTON  15 

young  Tvoman  had  beeu  over-persuaded 
by  ambitious  parents.  It  was  disastrous  ; 
and  Houston  did  wliat  seemed  to  him  in 
that  time  of  pain  and  humiliation  the 
only  thing  to  do,  and  also  the  best  thing 
to  do  for  his  wife.  He  went  away,  leav- 
ing her  free  to  be  divorced  on  the  plea 
of  abandonment ;  and,  since  calumny  was 
left  without  contradiction,  the  most 
dreadful  accusations  against  Houston 
were  made  public. 

Friends  went  with  him  on  the  first  stage 
of  his  journey  on  a  flat-boat  bound  South. 
Slowly  he  made  his  way  to  Arkansas 
Territory,  where  his  old  comrades,  the 
Cherokee  Indians,  were  now  living, 
meeting  on  his  journey  the  brothers 
James  and  Eezin  Bowie,  whom  he  was 
to  know  again  in  other  scenes.  From 
Little  Eock  he  wrote  to  President  Jack- 
son, whose  letter  of  reply  shows  that 
from  the  first  day  of  Houston's  wander- 
ings wild  stories  were  rife,  and  that 
Jackson  had  heard  these  rumors  long 


16  SAM  housto:n^ 

before  Doctor  Mayo^  of  Washington,  had 
reported  his  discovery  —  a  mare's  nest  — 
of  a  conspiracy,  organized  by  Hoaston, 
for  the  capture  of  Texas.  In  the  late 
summer,  Houston  reached  the  Indians. 
Old  Chief  Jolly  received  him  kindly ; 
and,  when  Houston  expressed  his  wish  to 
become  one  of  them,  a  council  was  called, 
where  Houston  told  his  story, — ^'told  of 
the  honors  he  had  received  from  his  own 
people,  that  an  unfortunate  marriage 
had  driven  him  from  his  State,  and  that 
he  had  come  to  live  with  Father  Jolly 
and  be  one  of  the  Nation." 

The  Cherokees  knew  him  well,  knew 
his  record  as  a  fighter,  and  admired  him. 
I^ow  they  listened  to  all  he  had  to  say. 
Then  ^  '■  Old  Jolly  rose,  and,  after  express- 
ing great  gratification  in  seeing  Houston 
again,  added :  ^  But  my  son  has  not 
acted  wisely.  He  should  have  remained 
among  his  people,  enjoying  his  honors, 
whipped  his  wife,  and  made  her  behave 
herself.'  "     In  spite   of  his  unwisdom, 


SAM   HOUSTON  17 

howeveFj  Houston  was  formally  admitted 
to  Cherokee  citizenship  ;  and  he  tried  to 
forget  his  disasters  in  an  absolutely  reck- 
less life.  He  was  first  in  everything, — 
fighting,  hunting,  drinking.  At  the 
army  posts  of  Fort  Coffee  and  Fort 
Gibson  he  met  some  of  the  officers,  and 
from  Fort  Gibson  he  got  his  letters.  Later 
Houston  built  a  cabin,  cleared  a  field, 
and  married  with  Indian  ceremonies  a 
handsome  half-breed  woman,  Talihina 
Kogers,  whose  white  ancestor  was  said 
to  have  been  an  English  officer.  Hous- 
ton also  traded  in  groceries,  his  shop 
being  in  a  small  storeroom  attached  to 
his  cabin. 

The  papers,  meanwhile,  were  filled 
with  surmises  concerning  him.  He  was 
a  romantic  figure,  an  uncertain  quan- 
tity; and  the  wildest  reports  found  cre- 
dence. In  June,  1829,  President  Jack- 
son, answering  Houston's  letter  from 
Little  Eock,  writes:  ^^It  hiis  been  com- 
municated to  me  that  you  had  the  ille- 


18  SAM   HOUSTON 

gal  enterprise  in  view  of  conquering 
Texa5 ;  that  you  had  declared  that  you 
would,  in  less  than  two  years,  be  em- 
peror of  that  country  by  conquest.  I 
must  really  have  thought  you  deranged 
to  have  believed  you  had  so  wild  a 
scheme  in  contemplation,  and  particu- 
larly when  it  was  communicated  that 
the  physical  force  to  be  employed  was 
the  Cherokee  Indians.  Indeed,  my  dear 
sir,  I  cannot  believe  you  have  any  such 
chimerical,  visionary  scheme  in  view. 
Your  pledge  of  honor  to  the  contrary 
is  a  sufficient  guarantee  that  you  will 
never  engage  in  any  enterprise  injurious 
to  your  country  that  would  tarnish  your 
fame. ' ' 

Living  with  them,  Houston  found  that 
the  Indians  were  systematically  swindled 
by  the  agents ;  and  in  1830  he  went  to 
Washington  to  report  these  outrages, 
and  succeeded  in  having  several  agents 
dismissed.  After  this,  backed  by  Hew 
York  capital,  he  bid  for  the  contract  to 


SAM   HOUSTON  19 

furnish  rations  to  the  tribes  beyond  the 
Mississippi.  His  bid  was  eighteen  cents 
a  day  for  each  Indian,  and  he  guaran- 
teed good  flour  and  sound  meat.  Jack- 
son was  anxious  to  give  him  the  con- 
tract, but  the  outcry  raised  over  his  bid 
by  the  Indian  ring  was  too  great.  The 
offer  was  declined,  and  Houston  re- 
turned to  Arkansas  by  way  of  Nash- 
ville. 

Feeling  concerning  the  broken  mar- 
riage ran  very  high  in  Tennessee ;  and 
the  news  of  Houston's  visit  to  Washing- 
ton where  Jackson  was  President,  and 
where  many  Tennesseeans  were  in  office, 
roused  suspicion  that  Houston  was  bid- 
ding for  public  sympathy.  And  the 
friends  of  Mrs.  Houston  in  Sumner 
County  worked  themselves  into  such  a 
state  of  indignation  as  to  call  a  public 
meeting  to  adopt  resolutions  '^vindicat- 
ing Mrs.  Houston's  character,"  At  this 
meeting  a  committee  was  aj^pointed  to 
prepare  a  report  which  was  to  be  given 


20  SAM  HOUSTON 

to  the  public ;  and,  further,  one  person 
wrote  a  letter  to  Washington  for  publi- 
cation, denouncing  Houston,  and  threat- 
ening an  ^^  appalling  fate''  if  he  should 
dare  to  enter  Tennessee.  The  letter 
was  of  such  a  character  as  to  prohibit 
publication  ;  but  it  was  shown  to  Hous- 
ton, and  he  promptly  returned  by  way 
of  Nashville.  No  harm  came  to  him, 
and  we  find  in  the  Tennessee  Historical 
Magazine  a  letter  from  him  to  the 
Speaker  of  the  Senate  of  Tennessee  in 
regard  to  this  committee.  The  letter 
was  dated,  ^^  Cherokee  Nation,  Neosha 
Wigwam,  December  17,  1830." 

Things  travelled  slowly  by  stage  and 
steamboat  in  those  days;  but  at  last  the 
resolutions  of  the  ^^  Sumner  County 
Committee,"  which  had  been  ^^  widely 
published,"  reached  Houston,  and  he 
entered  his  first  protest.  His  indigna- 
tion was  extreme  and  righteous.  He 
says,  ^^When  has  society  before  wit- 
nessed the  convention  of  a  committee 


SAM   HOUSTON  21 

for  the  purpose  of  taking  up  the  private 
and  domestic  circumstances  of  private 
personSy  and  in  a  public  and  solemn 
manner  reporting  thereupon?'^  From 
a  private  letter  I  quote:  ^^The  women 
of  Tennessee  were  very  indignant  toward 
Houston.  I  recollect  that  about  1830  or 
1831  it  was  rumored  that  Houston,  who 
was  on  a  visit  to  his  sister  in  an  ad- 
joining county,  would  visit  Knoxville. 
The  subject  was  discussed,  and  my 
mother  said  no  one  should  call  upon 
him.  She  said  to  me,  knowing  that  I 
greatly  admired  him,  ^!N'ow,  John,  do 
you  not  go  near  him.^  He  arrived  that 
afternoon;  and  at  supper  she  said:  ^  The 
people  have  little  to  do  to  honor  such  a 
man.  Did  you  see  him,  John?'  I  re- 
plied,   ^I  went   to  the   hotel,    and    he 

said,    ^^This  is  young  Mr.  ,"  and 

shook  me  by  the  hand  and  inquired  of 
*the  family.'      She    chided    me,   and    I 
was  very  glad    'the  correction  went  no 
further,'  " 


22  SAM  HOUSTON 

It  must  have  been  during  this  latter 
visit  that  Houston  published  a  comic 
proclamation  in  answer  to  the  many 
newspaper  vilifications,  offering  a  prize 
^^To  the  Author  of  the  most  Elegant, 
Eefined,  and  Ingenious  Lie  or  Calumny '  ^ 
concerning  himself.  Evidently,  he  did 
not  realize  the  cumulative  power  of 
slander,  nor  the  ill  done  him,  until  he 
returned  to  Washington  in  the  spring 
of  1832.  The  opposition  was,  as  usual, 
attacking  the  party  in  power,  Hous- 
ton's party  J  and  in  the  House  of  Eep- 
resentatives  Mr.  Stanberry,  of  Ohio, 
made  himself  famous  by  saying,  ^^Was 
the  late  Secretary  of  War  removed  in 
consequence  of  his  attempt  fraudulently 
to  give  to  Governor  Houston  the  con- 
tract for  Indian  rations ?''  This  was 
published  in  the  National  Intelligencer ; 
and  the  next  day  Mr.  Stanberry  re- 
ceived a  note  from  Houston,  asking  if 
what  he  had  read  was  true,  especially 
as  it   had    been    published   out  of   its 


SAM   H0UST0:N^  23 

proper  sequence.  Mr.  Cave  Johnson, 
who  had  delivered  this  note,  received 
an  ans^Yer  from  Mr.  Stanberry,  saying 
that  he  had  received  a  note  signed 
^^Sam  Houston/^  asking  explanation  of 
words  used  by  him  in  debate,  and  that 
he  could  not  ^^  recognize  the  right  of 
Mr.  Houston  to  make  this  request." 

In  his  subsequent  testimony  before  the 
House,  Mr.  Stanberry  declared  that  his 
friends  advised  him  to  arm  himself ;  and 
he  provided  himself  with  a  ^^pair  of  pis- 
tols and  a  dirk."  For  days  Mr.  Stan- 
berry  carried  this  armament,  and  was 
accompanied  by  a  friend  ;  but,  not  meet- 
ing Houston,  he  reduced  himself  to  one 
pistol,  and  went  about  alone.  Houston 
meanwhile  had  begged  from  a  friend 
a  small  hickory  stick,  which  he  himself 
had  cut  at  the  Hermitage. 

It  seems  to  have  been  a  moonlight 
night ;  and  Houston  was  talking  to 
Senator  Buckner,  of  Missouri,  on  a  street 
corner.       '^Houston   was    standing  not 


24  SAM   HOUSTO:t^ 

directly  facing  the  palings,  but  rather 
quartering  towards  it,  and  quartering 
to  me/^  was  Mr.  Buckner's  testimony. 
^^  Without  answering  my  question,  he 
seemed  to  shift  the  position  of  his  feet. 
I  saw  nothing  at  the  time,  but  soon  discov- 
ered a  gentleman  coming  across  the  ave- 
nue, ...  As  he  approached  nearer,  .  .  . 
I  discovered  it  to  be  Mr.  Stanberry.  It 
occurred  immediately  to  me  that  there 
would  be  a  difficulty,  .  .  .  having  under- 
stood previously  that  there  had  been 
dissatisfaction  between  them.  As  Stan- 
berry  approached  nearer,  he  appeared  to 
halt  in  his  place.  Houston  asked  if  that 
was  Mr.  Stanberry.  He  replied  very 
politely,  and  bowing  at  the  same  time, 
^Yes,  sir.'  ^Then,'  said  Houston,  ^you 
are  the  damned  rascal,'  and  with  that 
struck  him  with  the  stick  which  he  held 
in  his  hand.  Stanberry  threw  up  his 
hands  over  his  head,  and  staggered  back. 
His  hat  fell  off,  and  he  exclaimed,  '  Oh, 
don't!'"       But    the  caning  went  on, 


SAM   HOUSTON  25 

Stanberry  ^'hallooing"  and  carrying 
Houston  about  on  his  back  ;  Stanberry 
down,  with  his  i^istol  against  Houston's 
breast,  snapping ;  Houston  taking  it 
away,  then  Stanberry  putting  up  his 
feet,  Houston  continuing  the  whipping 
until  he  was  tired. 

The  next  morning  the  Speaker  of  the 
House  received  a  note  from  Mr.  Stan- 
berry, stating  that  he  had  been  waylaid, 
^^  knocked  down  by  a  bludgeon,  and 
severely  bruised  and  wounded  by  Sam- 
uel Houston,  late  of  Tennessee.'*  Hous- 
ton was  arrested  on  the  ground  that 
attacking  a  member  for  words  spoken  in 
the  House  was  a  ^'breach  of  privilege, '^ 
and  a  trial  began  which  lasted  for  a 
month. 

This  affair  was  the  culmination  of 
Houston's  misfortunes.  He  had  not 
chosen  to  make  cause  of  the  calumnies 
concerning  his  marriage,  and  did  not 
seem  to  heed  what  else  was  said,  save  in 
his  absurd  proclamation.     In   1830  he 


26  SAM   HOUSTON 

had  come  honestly  to  x)oint  out  that  the 
Indian  was  being  swindled.  He  had 
considered  his  bid  an  honest  one,  as  it 
was  afterward  proved  to  be,  Mr.  Stan- 
berry  himself  being  on  the  investigating 
committee  j  but  his  enemies  had  turned 
the  incident  of  its  declination  into  a 
scandal.  Eeturning  to  "Washington  and 
finding  that  all  the  calumnies  against 
him  had  been  focussed,  and  that  he  was 
a  marked  man, —  an  outcast,  not  an  exile, 
—  his  self-control  reached  its  limits. 
Men  knew,  however,  that  face  to  face 
Houston  was  not  to  be  treated  with  dis- 
respect, so  that  Stanberry's  remark, 
aimed  at  the  President,  as  he  afterward 
said,  and  made  in  the  House,  was  the 
^^  first  thing  that  Houston  could  nail'^  ; 
and  without  hesitation  he  ^^ nailed'^  it. 
Nor  did  Houston  ever  feel  himself  to 
blame  for  caning  Stanberry.  The  man 
had  slandered  him  publicly,  and,  look- 
ing on  him  as  an  outcast  and  friendless, 
had  treated  his  request  for  an  explana- 


SAM  HOUSTON  27 

tion  with  contempt ;  had  armed  himselfj 
while  Houston  carried  only  a  walking- 
stick.  And  now,  brought  before  the  bar 
of  the  House,  Houston  selected  Francis 
Scott  Key  to  defend  him. 

Whatever  Houston  elected  to  be,  he 
was  for  the  time,  to  himself  at  least, 
absolutely  that  thing.  Soldier,  gover- 
nor, Indian  chief,  exile,  boon  compan- 
ion, he  was  always  able  to  adapt  himself 
to  his  environment.  Kow  he  stood 
before  the  ^^bar  of  the  nation,"  of 
sufficient  importance  to  stop  the  wheels 
of  government;  arraigned  for  defend- 
ing his  good  name,  and  in  a  measui^e  a 
martyr  for  standing  silent  to  protect  a 
woman ;  he  rose  to  the  occasion,  put 
aside  all  eccentricities,  and  appeared 
^  ^  elegantly  dressed '  ^  with  a  poet  for  his 
counsel. 

In  his  own  defence,  Houston  was  at  his 
best.  ^^All  I  demand,''  he  said,  ^^is 
that  my  actions  may  be  pursued  to 
the  motives  which    oave    them    birth. 


28  SAM   HOUSTON 

Though  it  may  have  been  alleged  that 
^I  am  a  man  of  broken  fortune  and 
blasted  reputation/  I  never  can  forget 
that  reputation,  however  hunted,  is  the 
high  boon  of  Heaven.  .  ,  .  After  having 
been  '  blasted  by  adversity '  and  hunted 
from  society  as  an  outlaw,  to  be  libelled 
for  corruption,  and  charged  with  fraud 
on  the  government,  is  too  much  to  en- 
dure. Though  the  ploughshare  of  ruin 
has  been  driven  over  me,  and  laid  waste 
my  brightest  hopes,  yet  I  am  proud  to 
think  that,  under  all  circumstances,  I 
have  endeavored  to  sustain  the  laws  of 
my  country,  and  to  support  her  institu- 
tions. Whatever  may  be  the  opinions 
of  these  gentlemen,  in  relation  to  these 
matters,  I  am  here  to  be  tried  for  a  sub- 
stantive offence,  disconnected  entirely 
with  my  former  circumstances.  I  have 
only  to  say  to  those  who  rebuke  me  at 
the  time  when  they  see  adversity  sorely 
pressing  upon  me,  for  myself — 


SAM   HOUSTON  29 

^  I  seek  no  sympathy,  nor  need ; 
The  thorns  which  I  have  reaped  are  of 

the  tree 
I   planted  :   they  have   torn  me,  and   I 

bleed."' 

At  the  end  a  resolution  was  passed 
that  Houston  be  brought  to  the  bar  of 
the  House,  and  be  reprimanded  by  the 
Speaker.  The  rebuke  was  mild ;  and, 
Houston  being  further  convicted  of  as- 
sault and  battery,  and  fined  five  hundred 
dollars.  President  Jackson,  who  had  said 
openly,  ^^After  a  few  more  examples 
of  the  same  kind,  members  of  Congress 
will  learn  to  keep  civil  tongues  in  their 
heads,"  promptly  remitted  the  fine, 
^'divei^  good  and  sufficient  reasons 
mo^ang  me  thereto." 

Houston's  summing  up  of  the  affair 
was,  ^^I  was  dying  out  once,  and,  had 
they  taken  me  before  a  justice  of  the 
peace  and  fined  me  ten  dollars  for  as- 
sault and  battery,  it  would  have  killed 


30  SAM   HOUSTON 

me ;  but  they  gave  ine  a  national 
tribunal  for  a  theatre,  and  it  set  me  up 
again.'' 


III. 

The  romantic  country  of  Texas,  that 
^^new,  immense,  unbounded  world," 
now  became  the  stage  on  which  Hous- 
ton's part  was  to  be  played  to  the  end, 
—  Texas  with  her  tropic  sun  and  arctic 
' '  northers, ' '  her  clear  skies  and  treach- 
erous rivers,  her  mud,  like  black  glue, 
and  her  miles  and  miles  and  miles  of 
spring  flowers.  In  all  the  world  there 
is  nothing  more  beautiful  than  spring  on 
the  Texas  prairies. 

The  American  Eevolution,  that  latter- 
day  chaos  out  of  which  the  modern  order 
of  all  the  world  has  come,  upset  all  ex- 
perience; and  the  scarcely  fledged  United 
States  found  herself  face  to  face  with 
grave  problems.  The  Old  World  could 
reach  her  through  Louisiana,  and  the 
Floridas  could  find  the  way  to  her  very 
heart  through  the  mouth  of  the  Missis- 
sippi. But  Napoleon  would  sell  all  of 
Louisiana  or  none.     In  Congress  in  1803, 


32  SAM  HOUSTON 

in  the  debates  on  this  question,  the  op- 
position came  from  the  East,  Senator 
Tracy,  of  Connecticut,  saying  frankly : 
^^This  universal  consent  I  am  positive 
can  never  be  obtained  to  such  a  perni- 
cious measure  as  the  admission  of  Louisi- 
ana, of  a  world,  and  such  a  world,  into 
our  Union.  This  would  be  absorbing 
the  Northern  States,  and  rendering  them 
as  insignificant  in  the  Union  as  they 
ought  to  be  if  by  their  own  consent  the 
measures  should  be  adopted.'' 

This  addition,  which  would  endanger 
the  balance  of  power,  extended  north  to 
the  Lake  of  the  Woods  and  west  to  Van- 
couver's Island,  not  adding  even  Texas 
to  the  South,  though  many  declared  that 
she  was  included  in  these  prodigious 
boundaries.  After  this,  the  Floridas. 
There  gathered  hostile  Indians,  runaway 
slaves,  outlaws,  and  desperadoes, — a 
death- dealing  population  which  needed 
to  be  handled;  and  this  was  the  begin- 
ning in  1817  of  the  Seminole  War,  and 


SAM   HOUSTON  33 

of  Jackson's  famous  march  as  Conquer- 
ing Hero,  which  so  confused  his  govern- 
ment. In  1819  a  treaty  with  Spain 
provided  for  the  cession  of  the  Floridas, 
making  the  Sabine  Eiver  the  south- 
western boundary  of  the  United  States. 
In  his  Life  of  Henry  Clay,  Mr.  Schurz 
says:  '^  Adams  .  .  .  had  only  reluctantly 
given  up  the  line  of  the  Eio  Grande  del 
Norte,  and  accepted  that  of  the  Sabine. 
He  might  have  carried  his  point,  had 
not  Monroe,  with  the  concurrence  of  the 
rest  of  the  cabinet,  desired  the  Sabine 
as  a  boundary  for  peculiar  reasons.  In 
a  letter  to  General  Jackson  he  said, 
^Having  long  known  the  repugnance 
with  which  the  Eastern  portion  of  our 
Union  have  seen  its  aggrandizement  to 
the  West  and  South,  I  have  been  de- 
cidedly of  the  opinion  that  we  ought  to 
be  content  with  Florida  for  the  present.' 
It  was  therefore  in  deference  to  what 
Monroe  understood  to  be  North- eastern 
sentiment  that  Texas  was  given  up." 


34  SAM   HOUSTON 

In  his  Memoirs,  John  Quincy  Adams 
says,  ^^  Jackson's  passion  for  the  acquisi- 
tion of  Texas  was  intense.^'  Again, 
^'Jackson  proposed  anew  the  purchase 
of  Texas,  for  which  he  authorized  the 
offer  of  five  million  dollars,  while  at  the 
same  time  Sam  Houston  went  into  Texas 
to  kindle  an  internal  insurrection,  and 
separate  Texas  from  Mexico.'^ 

Jackson' s  later  view  was  :  '  ^  Our  West- 
ern boundary  would  be  the  Eio  Grande, 
which  is  of  itself  a  fortification  on  ac- 
count of  its  extensive  barren  and  unin- 
habitable plain.  With  such  a  barrier 
on  our  west,  we  are  invincible. '' 

But,  whatever  were  the  views  and 
squabbles  of  politicians,  there  was  not 
the  least  necessity  to  send  any  one  to 
kindle  anything  in  Texas.  It  was  all 
aflame  when  Houston  got  there,  and  had 
been  for  some  time, — from  the  day  that 
Louisiana  became  American  territory, 
and  before,  expansive  Americans  had 
drifted    across    the    border,    across  the 


SAM   HOUSTON  35 

^^Keutral  Ground,"  along  the  old  San 
Antonio  road,  into  the  heart  of  the  coun- 
try. They  were  not  welcome.  They 
were  not  wanted.  Spain  was  jealous  of 
the  United  States.  But,  when  in  1824 
Mexico  revolted  against  Spain,  theVolon- 
ists  served  Mexico  well ;  and  after  this 
colonists  were  begged  to  come  in. 

Texas,  however,  found  herself  tied  to 
and  practically  governed  by  the  prov- 
ince of  Coahuila,  distinctively  Mexican. 
And  in  1825  the  attempt  of  the  United 
States,  under  Mr.  Adams,  to  buy  Texas, 
offering  one  million  dollars,  and  Mr. 
Clay  speaking  of  the  transaction  as  the 
^^retransfer  of  Texas,"  on  the  ground 
that  she  had  been  included  in  the  Loui- 
siana purchase,  roused  in  the  Mexican 
government  the  same  jealousy  of  the 
United  States  that  had  existed  at  an 
earlier  date  in  the  government  of  Spain. 
After  this  there  was  an  increasing  feel- 
ing against  American  immigration,  as 
well   as  against  the  progressiveness   of 


36  SAM   HOUSTON 

the  colonists  already  established,  though 
things  were  endurable  until  1829,  when 
Spain  sent  an  expedition  against  Mexico. 
In  the  alarm  the  President  was  given  un- 
limited powers ;  and  he  at  once  requested 
the  President  of  Hayti  to  excite  through 
emissaries  the  slaves  in  Cuba  to  revolt, 
so  to  cause  trouble  for  Spain.  In  conse- 
quence he  was  driven  to  abolish  slavery 
in  Mexico.  He  modified  this  emanci- 
pation in  the  case  of  the  American 
colony. 

In  1830,  Bustemente,  Yice-President, 
organized  a  revolution  in  Mexico,  and 
made  himself  master  of  the  country,  with 
a  new  policy  for  the  Americans.  He 
forbade  further  immigration,  suspended 
all  colony  contracts,  established  custom- 
houses, and  stationed  Mexican  troops  at 
all  the  principal  points.  These  new  laws 
were  first  carried  out  at  Anahuac.  All 
the  ports  except  Anahuac  were  closed, 
martial  law  was  proclaimed,  citizens 
were  arrested,  slaves  fireed,  and  property 


SAM   H0UST0:JT  37 

seized.  The  colonists  held  indignation 
meetings,  declaring  against  Bnstemente 
and  for  the  liberal  constitution  made  by 
Mexico  in  1824,  under  which  the  colo- 
nists had  been  invited  into  the  country. 
The  United  States,  under  Jackson,  now 
offered  five  million  dollars  for  Texas, 
which  was  refused.  Santa  Anna  now 
came  forward.  He  excited  the  army 
against  Bnstemente ;  while  the  colonists, 
seeing  their  opportunity,  seized  Texas, 
drove  out  the  troops,  and  declared  for 
Santa  Anna. 

In  seizing  the  State,  the  colonists  first 
realized  their  strength  ;  and  it  deter- 
mined them  to  have  a  government  dis- 
tinct from  that  of  Coahuila.  They 
called  a  convention  at  San  Felipe  in  Oc- 
tober, 1832,  to  memorialize  the  general 
government  on  this  point.  This  meet- 
ing was  not  satisfactory,  and  after  a 
week  it  adjourned  ;  but  it  had  served  to 
put  the  thought  before  the  people.  In 
Mexico,    Santa  Anna  and    Bnstemente 


38  SAM   HOUSTON 

came  to  an  agreement.  Bustemente's 
laws  were  not  repealed,  however ;  and 
the  colonists  were  far  from  satisfied. 

This  is  the  barest  outline,  the  merest 
hint  of  what  the  colonists  endured  ;  but, 
it  is  enough  to  show  somewhat  the  con- 
dition of  things  when  Houston  arrived. 
He  had  been  receiving  letters  concerning 
Texas  ever  since  his  departure  from 
Tennessee;  for  all  who  knew  him  re- 
garded him  as  a  leader.  John  Wharton 
writes  in  July,  1829:  ^^I  have  heard 
you  intended  an  expedition  against 
Texas.  I  suppose,  if  true,  you  will  let 
some  of  your  ITashville  friends  know  of  it. 
It  is  stated  in  the  papers  and  believed 
generally  that  Spain  is  fitting  out  an  ex- 
pedition against  Mexico.  .  .  .  Should  this 
be  true,  I  make  no  doubt  but  you  will 
join  the  Mexicans.  I  certainly  will  do 
it.''  In  October  of  the  same  year  he 
writes  :  ^^  I  therefore  request  you  once 
more,  to  visit  Texas.  It  is  a  fine  field 
for  enterprise.     You  can  get  a  grant  of 


SAM   HOUSTON  39 

land  and  yet  be  surrounded  by  your 
friends  ;  and  what  may  not  ^  the  coming 
on  of  time '  bring  about  f  .  .  .  I  am  now 
on  my  way  to  Texas  in  company  with 
my  brother  and  his  lady,  Major  Boyd, 
and  Mr.  Groce." 

These  reports  spread  through  the 
country,  at  last  taking  the  form  that  a 
band  of  adventurers,  led  by  Sam  Houston, 
was  about  to  descend  on  Texas.  Hous- 
ton, meanwhile  was  '^ dying  out,''  un- 
til they  gave  him  a  ^^  national  tribu- 
nal for  a  theatre."  After  this  —  after 
he  had  expended  his  sore  feelings,  and  had 
stated  his  case  to  the  world  —  he  seemed 
once  more  to  wish  to  take  hold  of  his 
life.  Jackson  helped  him ;  and  it  was 
on  December  10,  1832,  a  little  after 
the  first  effort  of  the  Texan  colonists 
to  call  a  convention,  and  about  the 
time  that  Bustemente  and  Santa  Anna 
compromised,  that  Houston,  sent  to 
look  into  the  complaints  of  the  Mexican 
government  as  to  the  Indians  who  had 


40  SAM   HOUSTON 

crossed  into  Mexican  territory,  to  ex- 
amine into  the  value  of  Texas  in  case 
the  United  States  should  buy  it,  and  to 
investigate  some  private  land  claims, 
crossed  the  Eed  Eiver  on  his  way  to  Na- 
cogdoches. 

The  condition  of  the  West  and 
South-west  in  the  thirties  is  to-day  in- 
comprehensible ;  and  Mr.  Featherston- 
haugh's  Excursion  through  the  Slave 
States  gives  a  very  uncomfortable  view 
of  it.  To  Sam  Houston,  however,  it 
would  not  seem  as  it  would  to  an  Eng- 
lishman ;  and  of  Houston's  journey  we 
hear  little.  He  parted  with  the  Ind- 
ians, with  Talihina,  and  rode  away  on 
a  pony.  Two  friends  went  with  him 
some  distance  j  and,  on  parting,  one  ex- 
changed beasts  with  him  and  the  other 
gave  him  a  pair  of  pistols.  Talihina  re- 
fused to  go  with  him  or  to  join  him 
when  at  a  later  period  he  sent  for  her. 
She  *^  could  not  leave  her  people."  She 
died  a  few  years  later,  and  was  buried 


SAM   HOUSTON  41 

where  she  had  lived.  She  had  uo  chil- 
dren. 

Houston  found  but  two  houses  be- 
tween Jonesborough  and  Xacogdoches. 
He  spent  a  few  days  at  Xacogdoches, 
then  went  to  San  Felipe,  where  he  spent 
Christmas,  going  later  to  San  Antonio 
de  Bexar  in  company  with  James  Bowie, 
^^a  big  man  in  Texas,"  whom  he  had 
first  met  on  his  memorable  journey  into 
exile.  At  Bexar  he  saw  the  Comanche 
chiefe,  and  returned  to  Xacogdoches  by 
way  of  San  Felipe,  where  he  met 
Stephen  Austin.  At  Xacogdoches  the 
people  begged  him  to  remain,  which  in- 
vitation he  promised  to  consider  after 
he  had  made  his  report  to  President 
Jackson,  and,  through  the  Indian  com- 
missioners, to  the  Secretary  of  War. 
His  reports  are  dated  Nachitoches, 
Louisiana,  February  13,  1S32. 

To  President  Jackson:  ^'Dear  Sir, — 


Havino-    been   as   far   as   Bexar   in   the 


'to 


province  of  Texas,  I  am  in  possession  of 


42  SAM  HOUSTON 

some  information  tliat  will  doubtless  be 
interesting  to  you,  and  may  be  calcu- 
lated to  forward  your  views,  if  you 
should  entertain  any,  touching  the  ac- 
quisition of  Texas  by  the  United  States. 
That  such  a  measure  is  desirable  by 
nineteen- twentieths  of  the  population 
of  the  province,  I  cannot  doubt.  They 
are  now  without  laws  to  govern  or  pro- 
tect them.  Mexico  is  involved  in  civil 
war.  The  Federal  Constitution  [of 
1824]  has  never  been  in  operation. 
The  government  is  essentially  despotic. 
.  .  .  The  rulers  have  not  honesty,  and 
the  people  have  not  intelligence.  The 
people  of  Texas  are  determined  to  form 
a  State  government,  and  to  separate 
from  Coahuilaj  and,  unless  Mexico  is 
soon  restored  to  order,  and  the  Constitu- 
tion revived  and  enacted,  the  pro^ance 
of  Texas  will  remain  separate  from  the 
Confederacy  of  Mexico.  She  has  al- 
ready beaten  and  expelled  all  the  troops 
of  Mexico  from  her  soil,  nor  will  she 


SAM   HOUSTON  43 

permit  them  to  return.  .  .  .  Now  is  a 
very  important  crisis  for  Texas.  ...  If 
Texas  is  desirable  to  the  United  States, 
it  is  now  in  the  most  favorable  attitude, 
perhaps,  that  it  can  be,  to  obtain  it  on 
fair  terms.  England  is  pressing  her 
suit  for  it.  .  .  .  I  have  no  hesitation  in 
i:>ronouncing  it  the  finest  country,  to  its 
extent,  upon  the  globe.  .  .  .  There  can 
be  no  doubt  but  the  country  east  of  the 
Eio  Grande  would  sustain  a  population 
of  ten  million  of  souls.  My  opinion  is 
that  Texas  will,  by  her  members  in  con- 
vention on  the  first  of  April,  declare  all 
that  country  as  Texas  proper,  and  form 
a  State  constitution.  I  expect  to  be 
present  at  the  convention,  and  will 
apprise  you  of  the  course  adopted  so 
soon  as  its  members  have  taken  a  final 
action.  It  is  probable  I  may  make 
Texas  my  abiding-place.  In  adopting 
this  course,  I  will  never  forget  the  coun- 
try of  my  birth.  ' ' 

After  making  his  reports,  Houston  re- 


44  SAM   HOUSTON 

turned  to  IsTacogdoches,  and,  accepting 
tlie  invitation  to  citizensliip,  was  elected 
to  the  convention  called  for  April  1  at 
San  Felipe.  This  was  the  second  effort 
of  the  colonists  to  form  a  constitution 
independent  of  Coahuila,  though  re- 
maining one  of  the  Mexican  Confedera- 
tion. In  March,  down  in  Mexico, 
Santa  Anna  was  elected  President,  and 
declared  for  the  liberal  constitution  of 
1824,  promising  that  ^^his  administra- 
tion should  be  as  mild  and  tolerant  as 
his  own  character. '^ 

When  the  convention  met,  Houston 
was  elected  chairman  of  the  Committee 
on  Constitution,  and  David  Burnet 
chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Memo- 
rial. Of  course,  the  constitution  was 
modelled  on  that  of  the  United  States, 
save  that  freedom  of  religion  was  not 
mentioned.  Houston  opposed  incorpo- 
rating banking  institutions  as  unwise, 
and  displeasing  to  Mexico,  and  also  con- 
demned the  importation  of  negroes  from 


SAM   HOUSTON  45 

Africa,  which  had  been  going  on  in 
Texas  since  the  days  of  Lafitte.  The 
convention  adjourned  on  Aj^ril  13,  hav- 
ing appointed  Stephen  Austin  and  two 
others  commissioners  to  present  the  me- 
morial which  asked  for  a  separate  organ- 
ization from  Coahuila,  for  a  repeal  of  the 
law  prohibiting  immigration,  for  regular 
mail  service,  for  protection  against  Ind- 
ians, and  for  regulation  of  the  tariff. 

The  faithful  Austin,  whom  Houston 
named  the  ''Father  of  Texas, '^  alone 
went  to  Mexico,  where  he  found  the 
greatest  confusion.  Santa  Anna,  hav- 
ing sent  Almonte  to  inspect  Texas,  was 
resting  at  his  estate  5  and  Farias,  Yice- 
President,  was  at  the  head  of  affairs. 
The  memorial  was  reported  to  a  com- 
mittee, ''where  it  slept."  Cholera  ap- 
pearing increased  the  confusion.  Aus- 
tin could  get  no  hearing ;  and  in  Octo- 
ber, 1833,  in  despair,  he  wrote  to  the 
municipal  council  at  Bexar,  suggesting 
that  the  municipalities  in  Texas  unite, 


46  SAM   HOUSTON 

and  organize  a  State  without  waiting  for 
permission.  While  this  letter  was  on  the 
way,  he  obtained  the  abrogation  of  the 
law  prohibiting  immigration,  and  in  De- 
cember, tired  and  hopeless,  set  out  for 
home.  At  Saltillo  he  was  intercepted, 
taken  back,  and  imprisoned.  His  letter 
to  Bexar  had  been  returned  to  the  cen- 
tral government,  and  was  considered 
treasonable. 

During  this  time  there  is  nothing  told 
of  the  private  life  of  Houston,  unless  we 
take  a  passage  from  the  diary  of  Mr. 
Featherstonhaugh  (1834),  who,  in  his 
Excursion  through  the  Slave  States,  says : 
"We  made  an  agreeable  excursion  in 
the  neighborhood,  calling  at  the  little 
insignificant  wooden  town  of  Washing- 
ton, where  the  government  land  sales 
were  holding.  I  was  not  desirous  of 
remaining  long  at  this  place.  General 
Houston  was  here,  leading  a  mysterious 
sort  of  life,  shut  up  in  a  small  tavern, 
seeing  nobody  by  day  and  sitting  up  all 


SAM   HOUSTON  47 

night.  The  world  gave  him  credit  for 
passing  these  waking  hours  in  the  study 
of  trente  et  qiiarante  and  sept  a  lever  '^  but 
I  had  been  in  communication  with  too 
many  persons  of  late^  and  had  seen  too 
much  passing  before  my  eyes^  to  be 
ignorant  that  this  little  place  was  the 
rendezvous  where  a  much  deeper  game 
than  faro  or  rouge-et-noir  was  playing. 
There  were  many  persons  at  this  time  in 
the  village  from  the  States  lying  adja- 
cent to  the  Mississippi,  under  the  pre- 
tence of  purchasing  government  lands, 
but  whose  real  object  was  to  encourage 
the  settlers  to  throw  off  their  allegiance 
to  the  Mexican  government.  .  .  .  Having 
nothing  whatever  in  common  with  these 
plans,  and  no  inclination  to  forward  or 
oppose  them,  I  perceived  that  the  longer 
I  stayed  the  more  they  would  find  reason 
to  suj)pose  I  was  a  spy  upon  their  ac- 
tions, and  as  soon  as  the  judge  had 
spoken  to  a  few  of  his  friends  we  came 
away." 


48  SAM   HOUSTON 

How  much  of  tliis  information  given 
to  Mr.  Featherstonhaugh  was  American 
humor  playing  upon  an  Englishman  we 
do  not  know,  but  nowhere  is  there  any 
sign  that  the  colonists  made  any  secret 
of  their  discontent  or  of  their  deter- 
mination to  change  their  condition  just 
as  soon  as  it  was  possible. 

In  May,  1834,  Santa  Anna  emerged 
from  his  retreat,  and  called  for  a  new 
congress  to  make  a  new  constitution. 
In  June  he  released  Austin,  but  still  de- 
tained him,  knowing  that  anxiety  for 
him  would  keep  the  colonists  quiet. 
They  meanwhile,  angry  and  alarmed, 
had  without  effect  petitioned  for  his  re- 
lease. In  October,  Santa  Anna  at  last 
took  up  the  Texas  memorial,  and  prom- 
ised everything  except  a  government 
separate  from  Coahuila,  but  ordered  a 
new  election  for  governor  and  legislat- 
ure in  that  province.  In  a  dispute  that 
had  arisen  as  to  changing  the  capital 
of  Coahuila  from  Saltillo  to  Monclova, 
he  decided  for  Monclova. 


SAM   HOUSTON  49 

Austin,  still  detained,  wrote,  advising 
the  colonists  to  accept  this  adjustment. 
Almonte  making  a  good  report  of  Texas, 
the  value  of  that  State  was  much  in- 
creased in  the  eyes  of  the  Mexican 
government.  In  January,  1835,  the 
Mexican  National  Congress  met.  In  the 
elections  the  Centralists  had  carried 
everything  before  them,  save  in  the 
States  of  Zacatecas  and  Coahuila.  Za- 
catecas,  standing  by  the  constitution  of 
1824,  was  declared  in  rebellion.  Also, 
a  law  was  passed  reducing  the  militia, 
and  requiring  the  remainder  to  give  up 
their  arms.  This  law  the  Texans  de- 
clared to  be  despotic,  especially  as  their 
weapons  were  needed  to  procure  food 
as  well  as  to  protect  them  against  the 
Indians.  The  lately  elected  governor 
of  Coahuila  had,  in  the  mean  time, 
illegally  disposed  of  a  large  amount 
of  Texas  lands,  which  infuriated  the 
colonists ;  and  Saltillo,  willing  to  find 
anything    against    the    government    at 


50  SAM  HOUSTON 

Monclova,  withdrew  her  delegates,  and 
^^  pronounced.'^ 

In  April,  Santa  Anna  with  an  army- 
set  out  for  Zacatecas,  sending  General 
Cos  to  bring  order  into  the  disturbed 
government  of  Coahuila.  Zacatecas  was 
soon  overcome ;  and  Cos  had  no  trouble 
in  Coahuila,  as  the  Texans  declined  to 
defend  a  despised  governor.  The  legis- 
lature dispersing  hastily,  the  governor 
fled. 

By  this  time  Texas  was  divided  into 
two  parties,  one  determined  to  establish 
a  government  of  their  own,  the  other 
desiring  peace  at  any  price,  agreeing 
only  in  objecting  to  a  standing  army 
and  to  customs  being  collected  at  their 
own  ports  to  support  it  j  and  the  first 
movement  toward  war  was  the  driving 
from  the  port  of  Anahuac  by  the  war 
party  of  the  Mexican  troops  under  Cap- 
tain Jenorio,  which  recently  had  been 
sent  there.  The  peace  party  promptly 
disclaimed  this  act,  and  forwarded  the 


SAM   HOUSTOlSr  51 

prisoners  to  the  Mexican  authorities  at 
Bexar.  There  were  now  rumors  of  the 
approach  of  an  army.  Cos,  in  com- 
mand; sent  ahead  circulars  full  of  lib- 
eral promises  j  but  intercepted  despatches 
revealed  that  the  army  was  to  regulate 
and  subdiie  Texas. 

The  war  party  issued  stirring  ad- 
dresses. The  peace  party  sent  commis- 
sioners to  Cos,  promising  to  keep  the 
peace  if  troops  were  not  introduced  into 
Texas.  The  leaders  of  the  war  party 
were  Travis,  Bowie,  Williamson,  and 
Johnson  j  and  in  July  Zavalla,  governor 
of  the  City  of  Mexico,  arrived  in  Texas, 
fleeing  from  Santa  Anna.  An  order 
coming  to  arrest  Zavalla  and  the  leaders 
of  the  war  party,  fired  the  whole  of 
Texas.  The  colonists  were  now  con- 
vinced that  a  despotism  had  been  estab- 
lished, and  made  a  move  for  a  conven- 
tion of  all  Texas,  to  meet  at  Washington 
on  the  Brazos  on  October  15,  1835. 
The  people  of  the  Eedlands  had  also 


52  SAM   HOUSTON 

organized,  and  in  a  series  of  resolutions 
offered  by  Houston  in  San  Augustine 
the  measures  of  Santa  Anna  were  de- 
clared evidences  of  tyranny.  These 
resolutions  provided  also  for  the  organ- 
ization of  militia,  for  treaties  with 
Indians,  who  were  in  sufiicient  numbers 
to  be  always  a  danger,  and  declared 
that  all  who  now  deserted  the  country 
should  forfeit  lands.  In  September, 
Austin  at  last  returned. 

About  the  middle  of  September,  Cos 
landed  at  Matagorda.  He  was  to  disarm 
the  country,  and  to  expel  all  Americans 
who  had  come  in  since  1830,  driving 
even  the  conservative  Austin  to  say, 
^^War  is  the  only  resource."  Events 
were  hurrying  on  much  faster  than  Santa 
Anna  desired,  and  on  October  2  the 
first  armed  collision  took  place  at  Gon- 
zales over  a  cannon  which  the  Mexican 
authorities  demanded.  The  town  re- 
fused its  surrender,  and  trooi)s  were  sent 
from  Bexar  to  take  it.     Before  this  an 


SAM   HOUSTON  53 

armed  force  had  come  together  at  San 
Felipe  with  the  intention  of  intercepting 
General  Cos  on  his  march  from  the  coast ; 
and  on  the  demand  for  the  six-pounder 
a  courier  had  gone  from  Gonzales,  call- 
ing for  help.  The  men  at  San  Felipe 
went  by  forced  marches.  The  volun- 
teers from  the  Colorado  and  the  Brazos 
hurried  to  the  point  of  danger.  On 
Tuesday  the  force  at  Gonzales  was  eigh- 
teen men  ;  on  Wednesday,  one  hundred  ; 
on  Thursday,  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
eight.  They  crossed  the  Guadaloupe, 
routed  the  Mexicans,  and  returned  to 
Gonzales  in  the  afternoon  without  the 
loss  of  a  man.  Eiders  now  carried  the 
word  from  settlement  to  settlement : 
that  fight  had  been  won,  but  Ugartechea 
with  five  hundred  men  and  artillery  was 
marching  on  Gonzales !  Armed  men 
gathered  from  every  direction.  Xo  pay, 
no  rations,  nothing  but  their  long  rifles, 
their  bowie-knives,  and  a  firm  purj^ose. 
San  Felipe,  because  of  a  printing-press 


54  SAM   HOUSTON 

there,  was  looked  on  as  the  centre,  and 
Stephen  Austin  as  the  leader.  At  Na- 
cogdoches, Houston  was  elected  com- 
mander-in-chief of  Eastern  Texas,  and 
by  October  10  forwarded  an  organized 
company.  Ugartechea  paused  in  his 
purpose,  and  the  Texans  made  the  most 
of  the  time.  Each  township  was  called 
to  send  a  delegate  ;  and  at  San  Felipe  a 
council  was  formed,  a  president  chosen, 
and  Austin  was  left  free  to  go  to  the 
front.  The  colonists  now  in  force  de- 
cided that  they  would  march  on  Bexar, 
and  once  for  all  drive  the  Mexicans  out 
of  the  country.  All  men  being  required 
at  the  front,  the  convention,  which  had 
been  called  for  October,  was  i)ostponed 
until  November. 

In  Eastern  Texas,  Houston  had  issued 
a  proclamation. 

"  Headquarters,  Texas. 
"Department  Nacogdoches,  October  8,  1835. 

^^The  time  has  arrived  when  the  revo- 
lutions in  the  interior  of  Mexico  have  re- 


SAM   HOUSTON  55 

suited  in  the  creation  of  a  Dictator,  and 
Texas  is  compelled  to  assume  an  attitude 
defensive  of  her  rights.  .  .  .  The  priest- 
hood and  the  army  are  to  mete  out  the 
measure  of  our  wretchedness.  War  is 
our  only  alternative.  .  .  .  Volunteers  are 
invited  to  our  standards.  Liberal 
bounties  of  land  will  be  granted  to  all 
who  will  join  our  ranks  with,  a  good  rifle 
and  one  hundred  pounds  of  ammuni- 
tion. .  .  .  The  morning  of  Glory  has 
dawned  upon  us.  The  work  of  Liberty 
has  begun.  Our  actions  are  to  become 
a  part  of  the  history  of  mankind.  Pa- 
triot millions  will  sympathize  with  our 
struggles,  while  nations  will  admire  our 
achievements !  .  .  . 

^^Sa:vi  Houston, 
^'  General-in- chief  of  Department.^^ 

Adventurers,  hunters,  traders,  farm- 
ers,—  Austin,  Houston,  Travis,  Bowie, 
Bonham,  Milam,  Crockett,  Fannin,  Deaf 
Smith, —  these   men  who  were  making 


56  SAM   HOUSTON 

the  history  of  Texas,  who  were  carrying 
the  United  States  out  to  be  the  keeper 
of  the  Gates  of  the  West,  w^ere,  each 
in  himself,  a  living  romance.  I^one  of 
them  knew  fear,  and  few  of  them  lived 
to  see  the  end. 

Austin  sent  couriers  to  Houston  to 
summon  the  Eedlanders  -,  and  Houston 
writes,  ^  ^  I  gave  to  the  express  the  only 
last  five  dollars  I  had  to  bear  his  expenses 
east. ' '  On  the  13th,  Austin  with  three 
hundred  and  fifty  men  marched  toward 
Bexar,  camping  eight  miles  below  the 
town.  A  few  days  before  this  a  hun- 
dred and  ten  men  had  marched  on 
Victoria,  and  fifty  men  had  set  out  for 
Goliad.  On  this  latter  march,  hiding 
in  a  mesquit  thicket,  they  stumbled  on 
Ben  Milam,  who  had  been  imprisoned 
in  Coahuila.  Escaping,  he  had  ridden 
night  and  day,  and  now,  exhausted,  had 
crawled  into  the  thicket  to  rest.  He 
promptly  joined  the  party,  and  marched 
on  Goliad.     They  went  straight  to  head- 


SA]M   HOUSTON  57 

quarters,  shot  the  sentinel,  broke  open 
the  doors,  and  captured  the  comman- 
dant. The  Mexicans  surrendered  with 
one  man  killed.  They  captured  mili- 
tary stores,  artillery,  and  several  hun- 
dred stands  of  arms,  besides  cutting 
communication  between  Bexar  and  the 
gulf.  Victoria  had  been  evacuated  be- 
fore the  Texans  got  there. 

Austin  waited  for  re- enforcements, 
which  arrived  in  the  shape  of  members 
of  the  convention  —  which,  not  having  a 
quorum,  adjourned  to  the  army ;  and, 
a  few  days  later,  HoiLston  joined  him 
with  troops  from  East  Texas.  Austin, 
not  being  a  soldier,  now  begged  Houston 
to  take  command  ;  but  Houston  declined, 
declaring  his  perfect  willingness  to  serve 
under  Austin,  who  had  been  elected 
commander  by  the  troops  at  Gonzales. 
Houston  did  not  approve  of  the  attack 
on  Bexar,  looking  on  it  as  an  outpost 
which  they  would  not  be  able  to  hold, 
and  suggested,  even  then,  the  concentra- 


58  SAM   HOUSTOX 

tiou  of  the  army  behind  the  Guada- 
loupe. 

The  leaders  now  realized  that  it  was 
necessary  to  organize  a  government. 
The  matter  was  submitted  to  the  army, 
who  decided  that  the  delegates,  Houston 
being  one,  should  return  to  San  Felipe. 
The  army  now  advanced  on  Bexar.  The 
brilliant  little  victory  of  Concepcion,  led 
by  Bowie  and  Fannin,  was  won ;  and 
Austin  and  his  ' '  volunteer  combination 
of  freemen, ' '  with  a  fresh  directness  that 
must  have  astonished  General  Martin 
Perfecto  de  Cos  and  his  regular  army, 
demanded  the  surrender  of  the  town. 
Cos  refused  even  to  receive  the  demand, 
and  the  siege  began.  The  Texans  had 
come  to  fight,  and  the  dull  work  of  a 
siege  bored  them.  There  was  no  term 
of  enlistment,  no  discipline.  ' '  Gathered 
under  impulse,  they  left  at  pleasure"  j 
and,  by  November,  Austin  was  uncertain 
if  he  could  hold  the  army  at  all. 

At  San  Felipe  the  convention  met  in 


SAM   HOUSTON  59 

a  one-roomed  house  ;  and,  no  shelter  be- 
ing provided  for  the  delegates,  they 
slept  at  night  by  the  side  of  their  pick- 
eted horses.  Houston  appeared  in  his 
Indian  buckskin  breeches  and  Mexican 
blanket,  his  wardrobe,  doubtless,  being 
circumscribed  -,  and  Andrew  Jackson 
^^  thanked  God  there  was  one  man  at 
least,  in  Texas,  whom  the  Almighty  had 
the  making  of,  and  not  the  tailor."  A 
declaration  was  drawn  up,  saying  that 
they  had  risen  against  Santa  Anna  and 
despotism,  but  were  still  faithful  to  the 
true  Mexican  government  and  the  con- 
stitution of  1824. 

This,  however,  did  not  suit  the  more 
imi)ulsive,  who  were  anxious  for  an 
immediate  declaration  of  independence  ; 
and  they  proceeded  to  pass  a  resolution 
to  this  effect.  Houston,  who  had  drawn 
up  the  first  declaration,  and  believed 
moderation  to  be  the  wiser  course,  made 
a  strong  speech  which  caused  the  con- 
vention to  reconsider  5  and  the  first  dec- 


60  SAM  HOUSTON 

laration  was  given  to  the  world,  where 
the  framers  hoped,  and  wisely,  that  it 
would  gain  sympathy  for  the  colonists. 
The  government  was  authorized  to  con- 
tract for  a  loan  of  one  million  dollars, 
on  security  of  public  lands,  to  establish 
postal  service,  to  arrange  treaties  with 
the  Indians,  and  to  create  a  regular 
army  of  eleven  hundred  and  twenty 
men.  Henry  Smith  was  elected  gov- 
ernor J  J.  W.  Eobinson,  lieutenant  gov- 
ernor 5  Stephen  Austin,  Branch  Archer, 
and  William  Wharton,  commissioners  to 
the  United  States,-  and  Houston,  ^Hhe 
man  in  buckskin,''  was  unanimously 
elected  commander-in-chief  of  the  army 
—  ^^to  be  raised." 

They  adjourned  on  November  13,  to 
meet  again  on  March  1,  1836,  leaving  a 
council  selected  from  the  convention  as 
advisory  committee  to  aid  the  governor. 
Houston  appointed  his  staff,  drew  up  a 
plan  for  the  organization  of  the  army, 
and  remained  at  San  Felipe  to  push  it 


SAM   HOUSTOX  61 

throngli,  being  sure  that  this  was  the 
most  important  thing  to  be  accom- 
plished. 

At  Bexar,  Colonel  Burlison  was  now 
in  command  of  the  diminishing,  dissatis- 
fied army.  They  did  everything  pos- 
sible and  daring  to  entice  the  Mexicans 
out  of  the  town.  They  amused  them- 
selves with  scouting  expeditions,  with 
^^  catching  the  spent  cannon-balls  and 
throwing  them  back, ' '  with  listening  to 
the  stories  of  a  Dr.  Grant  who,  owning 
large  estates  in  Mexico,  was  sure  that 
Mexico  was  ready  to  rise  against  Santa 
Anna,  and  that  the  Texans  needed  only  to 
march  to  Matamoras,  to  have  all  Mexico 
at  their  feet.  In  spite  of  all,  the  army 
was  melting  away,  when  some  Ameri- 
cans, escaping  from  the  town,  told  them 
that  it  could  be  taken  by  assault.  It 
was  arranged  to  attack  at  dawn  the  next 
morning.  All  was  ready,  when,  sud- 
denly, all  was  postponed.  A  guide  was 
missing :    they    were    betrayed  !     They 


62  SAM   HOUSTON 

were  ordered  hastily  to  abandon  the 
siege.  The  men  were  beside  themselves, 
and  bloodshed  was  threatened  when  the 
guide  returned.  Milam  came  out  of 
Burlison's  tent,  and  cried,  ^ ^Who'll  fol- 
low old  Ben  Milam  into  San  Antonio?'^ 
There  was  a  shout,  and  three  hundred 
men  volunteered. 

On  December  5  the  assault  was  begun 
just  before  day.  They  fought  from  house 
to  house,  burrowing  through  walls,  rush- 
ing across  streets,  firing  from  house-tops, 
fortifying  as  they  went.  Milam  was 
killed  in  a  street  rush.  On  the  9th  Cos 
capitulated,  and  on  the  14th  marched 
away ;  and  not  a  Mexican  soldier  was 
left  in  Texas.  It  was  a  gallant  deed,  and 
the  enthusiasm  in  the  United  States  was 
great.  All  over  the  country,  from  New 
York  to  New  Orleans,  funds  were  raised, 
and  ^^  emigrants  fitted  out  in  squads, 
companies,  and  battalions.  ^^ 

San  Antonio  de  Bexar  had  been 
taken,    and     Cos    had    retreated  j    but 


SAM   HOTJSTOIS^  63 

Houston  went  on  with  his  work.  Cos 
would  return  j  and  Houston  wrote,  ^ '  By 
the  rise  of  grass  we'll  be  on  the  march.'' 
On  December  12  he  issued  a  proclama- 
tion as  commander-in-chief,  calling  for 
recruits  for  both  regular  and  volunteer 
service.  ^'The  first  of  March  next  we 
must  meet  the  enemy  with  an  army 
worthy  of  our  cause." 

But  things  were  awry  in  the  govern- 
ment. The  governor  and  the  council 
were  at  odds,  and  disappointed  office- 
seekers  were  hampering  every  move. 
The  country  and  army  were  full  of  ad- 
venturers, to  whose  hopes  organization 
was  death.  There  was  discontent  among 
the  colonists,  also,  and  some  jealousy  of 
Houston  as  a  new-comer.  There  was 
dangerous  discontent  at  the  various  mili- 
tary points,  where  the  bodies  of  idle  men 
had  listened  to  and  been  persuaded  by 
the  stories  of  Dr.  Grant,  who  had  pub- 
lished a  proclamation  containing  his 
views, — stories  telling  of  the  riches  of 


64  SAM   HOUSTON 

Mexico  and  the  certainty  of  the  over- 
throw of  Santa  Anna,  if  the  people  were 
only  encouraged  by  the  advance  of  the 
Texan  army  to  Matamoras. 

At  headquarters  the  discontent  of  the 
soldiers  was  well  known  ;  and  a  march 
to  Matamoras,  solely  to  prevent  their 
disbanding,  had  been  suggested,  Hous- 
ton appointing  Bowie  to  lead  the  expe- 
dition. But  this  was  not  what  Grant 
wanted.  The  council  was  with  Grant, 
and  a  regular  campaign  had  been 
planned. 

Houston  had  been  ordered  to  move 
his  headquarters  to  Washington,  but 
did  not  dare  to  leave  the  council  until 
he  had  done  his  best  to  organize  and  to 
place  troops  and  provisions  at  proper 
points.  On  December  25  he  moved  to 
Washington,  where  he  found  volunteer 
companies  from  the  States,  all  very 
much  disgusted  with  the  condition  of 
civil  affairs.  He  writes  the  governor : 
^^Ihad  great  difficulty  in  getting  them 


SAM   HOUSTON  65 

to  volunteer  for  any  definite  period.  .  .  . 
To-day  there  has  been  an  arrival  in  six 
days  from  San  Antonio,  which  reports 
all  quiet,  but  no  discipline." 

The  day  after  Houston  removed  his 
headquarters  the  council  appointed  him 
commissioner  to  treat  with  the  Indians. 
At  the  same  time  he  was  criticised  for 
not  being  at  the  front.  He  explained  to 
the  governor  the  necessity  of  his  ^^occu- 
pying, until  the  campaign  opened,  a 
central  position."  But  on  this  very 
day,  while  Houston  was  showing  his 
movements  to  be  necessary,  and  in  the 
direction  of  order  and  discipline.  Grant 
with  two  hundred  volunteers,  with  all 
that  they  could  take  from  public  stores 
and  private  property, — with  everything, 
in  fact,  except  authority, — began  the 
march  from  Bexar  to  Matamoras.  Colo- 
nel Johnson  next  applied  to  the  council 
to  do  likewise ;  and  this  body  acceded 
to  the  request,  as  '  ^  the  expedition  under 
Grant  would  need  support. ' ' 


66  SAM   HOUSTON 

Strange  to  say,  the  old  fatal  dream  of 
the  ^^South-western  Empire"  was  once 
more  blinding  men.  Alliance  with  the 
Mexicans, — an  empire  of  East  Mexico 
and  Texas  !  It  was  the  cause  of  this 
expedition.  It  was  in  the  eyes  of  the 
council,  of  the  peace  party  behind  the 
council,  of  Grant,  Fannin,  Johnson. 
Their  idea  was  to  disown  the  i)rovisional 
government,  to  put  this  expedition 
under  the  orders  of  independent  offi- 
cers, and  so  show  the  Mexicans  that  they 
were  confident  of  Mexican  co-operation. 

On  January  6  Houston  sent  to  the 
governor  the  report  of  Colonel  Neill,  at 
Bexar,  as  to  the  destitute  condition  in 
which  the  place  had  been  left  by  Grant. 
Houston  writes:  ^' Manly  and  bold  de- 
cision alone  can  save  us  from  ruin.  .  .  . 
The  wounded  and  sick  have  been  left 
destitute,  ...  by  self-created  officers, 
who  do  not  acknowledge  the  only  gov- 
ernment known  to  Texas.  .  .  .  Within 
thirty  hours  I  shall  set  out  for  the  army. 


SAM   HOUSTO^^  67 

.  .  .  Xo  language  can  express  my  an- 
guish of  soul.  .  .  .  Send  supplies  to  the 
wounded,  the  naked,  the  sick,  and  the 
hungry,  for  God's  sake!" 

On  the  7th  Johnson,  having  gone  to 
San  relii)e  to  have  Grant's  expedition 
legalized,  declined  to  join  forces  with 
Fannin,  who  had  been  appointed  by  the 
council  ^^  agent  to  raise  and  collect  any 
volunteers  willing  to  go  to  Matamoras," 
Tvith  full  powers  in  every  direction. 
Johnson,  also  getting  general  powers,  re- 
turned to  Grant ;  and  they  issued  a  proc- 
lamation calling  on  ^'  all  who  wished  to 
keep  the  war  out  of  Texas"  to  join 
them. 

On  the  9th  Governor  Smith,  receiving 
Houston^ s  letter  enclosing  Weill's  report, 
sent  a  message  to  the  council,  denounc- 
ing their  course,  and  declaring  them 
adjourned.  The  council  promptly  re- 
turned the  message,  declaring  the  gover- 
nor deposed.  The  governor  retained 
the  archives,  and  the  council  did  what 


68  SAM   HOUSTON 

more  was  possible  to  block  the  efforts  of 
the  governor  and  of  Houston. 

Houston  reached  Goliad  on  the  night 
of  January  14.  Everything  was  in  con- 
fusion J  and  the  troops,  discontented  for 
want  of  food,  made  difficulties  about 
obeying  orders  and  concentrating  at 
Eefugio.  On  the  17th  Houston  received 
a  message  from  Colonel  I^eill,  at  Bexar, 
that  the  enemy  was  reported  approach- 
ing in  force.  He  hurried  Bowie  with 
thirty  men  to  San  Antonio,  with  orders 
to  Neill  to  level  the  fortifications  and 
bring  away  the  guns.  Houston  wrote 
to  the  governor :  ^^  Bowie  will  leave  in  a 
few  hours  for  Bexar ;  .  .  .  and,  if  you 
should  think  well  of  it,  I  will  remove  all 
the  cannon  and  other  munitions  of  war 
to  Gonzales  and  Copano,  blow  up  the 
Alamo,  and  abandon  the  place.  It  will 
be  impossible  to  keep  up  the  station 
with  volunteers.  The  sooner  I  can  be 
so  authorized,  the  better  it  will  be  for 
the  country.     In  an  hour  I  will  take 


SAM   HOUSTON  69 

up  the  line  of  march  for  Eefugio,  with 
a  force  of  about  two  hundred  and  nine 
effective  men,  where  I  will  await  orders 
from  your  excellency.  I  do  not  believe 
that  an  army  of  such  small  force  should 
advance  upon  Matamoras,  with  a  hope 
or  belief  that  the  Mexicans  will  co-op- 
erate with  us.  I  have  no  confidence  in 
them.  ...  Do  forward  the  regulars.  .  .  . 
I  have  sent  to  Captain  Dimit  to  raise 
one  hundred  men  and  repair  to  Bexar,  if 
it  should  be  invested.  .  .  .  Captain  Pat- 
ton  will  do  likewise.  I  would  myself 
have  marched  with  a  force  to  Bexar, 
but  the  Matamoras  fever  rages  so  high 
that  I  must  see  Colonel  Ward's  men. 
You  can  have  no  idea  of  the  difiiculties. 
.  .  .  Better  materials  never  were  in 
ranks.  The  government  and  all  its 
officers  had  been  misrepresented  to  the 
army. ' ' 

At  Eefugio,  Houston  found  fm^ther 
disorder.  Xews  travelled  slowly;  and 
Houston  in  Washington,  ordered  there 


70  SAM  HOUSTOI:^ 

by  the  council,  had  not  realized  the  full 
iniquity  of  that  council  until  Colonel 
Johnson  showed  him  his  authority  to 
command  the  Matamoras  expedition, 
and  told  him  also  of  the  wide  powers 
granted  to  Fannin.  At  the  same  time 
Houston  heard  of  the  adjourning  of  the 
council  by  the  governor,  and  the  depo- 
sition of  the  governor  by  the  council. 
Neither  had  the  power  to  destroy  the 
other;  but,  as  the  council  had  practically 
superseded  him,  putting  several  com- 
manders-in-chief in  the  field,  and  not 
being  willing  to  bear  responsibility 
where  he  had  no  authority,  there  seemed 
to  be  but  one  course  for  Houston  to  pur- 
sue. He  returned  to  Washington,  and 
reported  fully  to  Governor  Smith;  and 
the  governor  decided :  '^  Your  absence  is 
permitted  by  the  illegal  acts  of  the 
council.  ...  In  the  mean  time  you 
will  conform  to  your  instructions,  and 
treat  with  the  Indians.'' 

Colonel   Neill  now  reported  that  his 


SAM   HOUSTON  71 

garrison  at  Bexar  had  dwindled  to 
eighty  men,  that  he  had  no  teams  to 
move  the  artillery,  therefore  he  had  not 
destroyed  the  fortifications,  and  asked  to 
be  relieved.  The  governor  at  once  re- 
moved young  Travis  from  his  recruiting 
station,  causing  more  confusion,  and 
sent  him  to  Bexar ;  and  Travis  wrote 
to  Houston  for  five  hundred  men.  He 
also  asked  for  money,  provisions,  and 
clothes.  But  too  many  had  been  al- 
lowed to  appropriate  from  the  country's 
slender  store  for  Houston  to  be  able  to 
grant  the  righteous  demands  of  Travis. 


IV. 

In  Mexico,  meanwhile,  the  country 
had  been  unified  by  the  fall  of  Bexar, 
and  by  the  proclamation  of  Dr.  Grant 
which  had  reached  the  government. 
Santa  Anna,  first  sending  General  Urrea 
to  Matamoras,  had  determined  himself 
to  lead  the  invading  army,  and  set  out 
from  Saltillo  February  1,  with  six  thou- 
sand troops. 

It  was  nearly  ^^the  rise  of  grass''  j 
and,  of  those  in  Texas  who  had  any  con- 
ception of  organization  or  military  tac- 
tics, Austin  had  gone  as  agent  to  the 
United  States,  Bowie  and  Travis  were 
shut  up  in  Bexar,  and  Houston  was  de- 
tailed to  treat  with  the  Indians.  The 
Matamoras  expedition  had  lingered  be- 
cause of  private  dissension,  then  because 
of  the  force  of  Urrea  which  had  reached 
Matamoras.  At  this  time  Fannin,  un- 
der orders  from  the  council,  was  at 
Goliad;  Johnson  was  at  San  Patricio; 


SAM   IIOUSTOX  73 

and  Grant,  with  tlie  volunteers  from 
Bexar,  was  raiding  the  country.  The 
governor  and  council  were  still  at  war. 

On  February  18  TJrrea  set  out  from 
Matamoras  with  more  than  six  hundred 
men  in  search  of  Grant  and  Johnson. 
On  the  22d  Santa  Anna  appeared  be- 
fore Bexar.  The  quick  descent  was  un- 
expected ;  and  the  garrison  retreated  to 
the  Mission  of  the  Alamo,  Lieutenant 
Dickenson  picking  up  his  wife  and  child 
on  the  way,  and  carrying  them  in  with 
him  on  his  horse.  Santa  Anna  demanded 
the  surrender  of  the  mission.  Travis  re- 
plied with  a  cannon-shot.  Santa  Anna 
ran  up  the  '^blood-red  flag  of  no  quar- 
ter, ' '  and  the  siege  was  begun. 

On  the  23d  Travis  sent  to  Fannin  for 
aid.  The  letter  reached  Fannin  on  the 
25th,  and  on  the  28th  he  set  out  for 
Bexar.  In  a  little  distance  a  wagon 
broke  down.  They  were  short  of  teams 
and  of  provisions,  and  it  was  decided 
to   give  ui)   the  attempt.     On  the  24th 


74  SAM   HOUSTON 

Travis  sent  off  a  courier  with  an  appeal 
^Ho  the  people  of  Texas,  and  all 
Americans  in  the  world, '  ^  —  a  brave 
appeal,  ending :  '  ^  Though  this  call  may 
be  neglected,  I  am  determined  to  sus- 
tain myself  as  long  as  possible,  and  die 
like  a  soldier  who  never  forgets  what  is 
due  to  his  own  honor  and  that  of  his 
country.     Victory  or  death  ! 

^^W.  Barrett  Travis, 
^^  Lieutenant  Colonel  Commanding, 

^^P.S. — The  Lord  is  on  our  side. 
When  the  army  appeared  in  sight,  we  had 
not  three  bushels  of  corn.  We  have  since 
found  in  deserted  houses  eighty  or  ninety 
bushels,  and  got  into  the  walls  twenty  or 
thirty  beeves.^' 

This  letter  was  indorsed  on  the  back 
by  the  couriers  who  forwarded  it :  — 

^^  Since  the  above  was  written,  I  heard 
a  very  heavy  cannonade  during  the  whole 
day.     Think  there  must  have  been  an 


SAM  HOUSTON  75 

attack  on  tlie  Alamo.  "We  were  short 
of  ammunition  when  I  left.  Hurry  all 
you  can  forth.  When  I  left,  there  were 
but  one  hundred  and  fifty  men  deter- 
mined to  do  or  die.  To-morrow  I  leave 
for  Bexar  with  what  men  I  can  get. 
Almonte  is  there.  The  troops  are  com- 
manded by  General  Sesma.  Albert 
Martin.'^ 

'^1  hope  that  every  one  will  Een- 
devez  at  Gonzales  as  soon  Possible,  as  the 
Brave  soldiers  are  suffering ;  don  not 
forget  the  powder  is  very  scarce,  and 
should  not  be  delad  one  moment.  L. 
Smithers. ' ' 

In  answer  to  this,  thirty-two  men 
from  Gonzales,  under  Captain  J.  W. 
Smith,  made  their  way  into  the  Alamo 
at  daylight  on  March  1.  On  the  3d 
Travis  sent  out  his  last  appeal :  '  ^  I  am 
still  here  in  fine  spirits  and  well-to-do. 
AYith  one-hundred  and  forty-five  men  I 
have  held  the  place  against  a  force  vari- 
oasly  estimated  from  fifteen  hundred  to 


76  SAM   HOUSTON 

six  tliousand  ;  and  I  shall  continue  to  hold 
it  until  I  get  relief  from  my  country- 
men, or  I  will  x>erish  in  its  defence. 
.  .  .  Again  I  feel  confident  that  the  de- 
termined spirit  and  desperate  courage 
heretofore  exhibited  by  my  men  will 
not  fail  them  in  the  last  struggle.  .  .  . 
The  victory  will  cost  that  enemy  so  dear 
that  it  will  be  worse  than  a  defeat.  .  .  . 
A  blood-red  flag  waves  from  the  church 
of  Bexar,  and  in  the  camp  above  us. 
.  .  .  The  war  is  one  of  vengeance 
against  rebels.  .  .  .  God  and  Texas! 
Victory  or  death  ! ' ' 

On  this  same  day  J.  B.  Bonham,  who 
had  gone  to  ask  aid  of  Fannin,  returned 
and  made  his  way  into  the  Alamo. 

In  Washington  on  the  Brazos,  on 
March  1,  the  convention  met  to  make 
a  Declaration  of  Independence  and  a 
Constitution  for  the  Eepublic  of  Texas. 
The  dispute  between  the  governor  and 
the  council  was  ignored,  and  the  inva- 
sion received  immediate  attention.     On 


SAM   HOUSTON  77 

March  2  Houston^  who  had  returned 
from  a  successful  mission  to  the  Indians, 
and  had  been  elected  to  the  convention 
from  Eefugio,  issued  an  appeal  to  the 
people  :  — 

"  Convention  Hall,  Washington, 
March  2,  1836. 

^'War  is  raging  on  the  frontiers. 
Bexar  is  besieged  by  two  thousand  of  the 
enemy.  .  .  .  Ee- enforcements  are  on  the 
march  to  unite  with  the  besieging  army. 
By  the  last  report  our  force  at  Bexar 
was  only  one  hundred  and  fifty  men. 
The  citizens  of  Texas  must  rally  to  the 
aid  of  our  army,  or  it  will  perish.  .  .  .  In- 
dependence is  declared.  It  must  be 
maintained.  Immediate  action,  united 
with  valor,  can  alone  achieve  our  great 
work.  The  services  of  all  are  forthwith 
required  in  the  field. 

'^Sam  Houston, 
*^  Commander-in-chief  of  tJie  Army. 

*'P.S. —  It  is  rumored  that  the  enemy 


78  SAM   HOUSTON 

is  on  the  marcli  to  Gonzales.  .  .  .  The 

fate  of  Bexar  is  unknown. "... 

Down  at  San  Patricio  on  this  day  the 
commands  of  Grant  and  Johnson  had 
been  defeated  and  slaughtered  by  TJrrea, 
only  five  men  escaping. 

On  the  4th  Houston  was  unanimously 
elected  commander-in-chief  of  the  re- 
public, as  he  had  been  of  the  provisional 
government.  The  organization  of  the 
militia  received  prompt  attention.  Ee- 
publican  constitution,  president,  vice- 
president,  two  houses  of  Congress,  and  a 
government  ad  interim  were  provided, 
as  the  constitution  had  to  be  submitted 
to  the  peoi)le.  David  Burnet  was  elected 
president  of  the  provisional  government. 
On  Sunday,  March  6,  Travis's  last  ap- 
peal of  the  3d  was  received,  and  read  to 
the  convention.  The  excitement  was 
intense,  and  a  demand  was  made  that 
the  whole  convention  should  march  to 
the  Alamo.     Houston  stopped  this  wild 


SAM   HOUSTON  79 

move.  A  handful  of  men  against  Santa 
Anna's  army!  It  would  be  madness. 
The  convention  must  complete  its  work. 
He  himself  set  out  for  Gonzales. 

From  Gonzales  on  the  11th  Houston 
wrote  to  Fannin  :  — 

'  ^  On  my  arrival  here  this  afternoon 
the  following  intelligence  was  received 
through  a  Mexican  supposed  to  be 
friendly  :  .  .  .  that  the  Alamo  was  at- 
tacked on  Sunday  morning  at  dawn  of 
day,  by  about  two  thousand  men,  and 
carried  a  short  time  before  sunrise.  .  .  . 
I  have  little  doubt  but  that  the  Alamo 
has  fallen.  You  are  therefore  referred 
to  the  enclosed  order. 

'^I  am,  sir,  &c., 

^^Sam  Houston. 

^^P.  S. —  In  corroboration  of  the  truth 
of  the  fall  of  the  Alamo,  I  have  ascer- 
tained that  Colonel  Travis  intended 
firing  signal  guns  at  three  different 
periods    each  day  until  succor  should 


80  SAM   HOUSTON 

arrive.  No  signal  guns  have  been  heard 
since  Sunday,  though  a  scouting  party 
has  just  returned  who  approached  with- 
in twelve  miles  of  it,  and  remained  there 
forty- eight  hours.  ^' 

Santa  Anna  assaulted  the  Alamo  at 
four  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  Sun- 
day, March  6.  The  troops,  numbering 
twenty-five  hundred,  completely  sur- 
rounded the  Mission,  bringing  with  them 
scaling-ladders,  crowbars,  and  axes,  the 
cavalry  forming  a  cordon  in  the  rear  of 
the  infantry  to  prevent  retreat  or  escape. 
In  the  ghastly  hour  that  is  neither  night 
nor  day  the  charge  was  sounded ;  and 
the  Mexicans,  dashing  forward,  were  re- 
ceived with  a  deadly  fire  by  the  little 
garrison  that  had  been  watching  and 
fighting  since  February  23.  On  three 
sides  the  attack  failed.  The  columns  were 
concentrated  on  the  north  side.  Once 
more  they  recoiled  ;  but  on  the  third 
charge  they  scaled  the  walls,  and  reached 
the  convent  yard,   driving  the  Ameri- 


SAM   HOUSTON  81 

cans  into  the  hospital  and  convent. 
Every  inch  of  ground  was  fought  for. 
Bonham  and  Travis  fell  before  the  last 
struggle  in  the  church.  Crockett  met 
death  at  the  door^  with  his  long  rifle, 
^^ Betsy,"  held  like  a  club  in  his  hands. 
Bowie,  disabled  by  a  fall,  and  doing 
deadly  work  from  his  cot,  was  killed  by 
a  shot  through  the  crack  of  the  door. 
^^A  wounded  man  fled  into  the  room 
where  was  Mrs.  Dickenson  with  her  baby. 
The  Mexicans  killed  him,  raising  his 
body  on  their  bayonets,  ^ike  a  bundle 
of  fodder. ' ' '  Mrs.  Dickenson,  her  baby, 
two  Mexican  women,  and  a  negro  boy 
belonging  to  Travis  were  the  only  sur- 
vivors of  the  massacre.  After  the 
slaughter  the  bodies  of  the  Americans 
were  burned,  but  about  them  lay  five 
hundred  and  twenty- one  dead  Mexicans. 

There  is  a  monument  in  Texas  to  the 
heroes  of  the  Alamo, —  young  Travis 
and  his  men, —  and  below  is  written, — 

^  ^  Thermopylae  had  her  messenger  of 
defeat :  the  Alamo  had  none. ' ' 


V. 

Up  to  this  point,  Burleson  and  JSTeill 
had  been  making  every  effort  to  raise 
troops  for  the  relief  of  Travis ;  and  it 
was  Houston's  intention  to  combine  these 
forces  with  those  of  Fannin,  and  march 
to  Bexar,  and  he  so  ordered  ^'in  ad- 
vance of  his  arrival  at  Gonzales."  But 
here  he  met  the  dreadful  news,  listened 
to  the  Mexican  deserter,  and  wrote  the 
dire  tidings  to  Fannin,  enclosing  orders 
to  blow  up  the  defences,  bring  away  the 
women  and  children,  sink  in  the  river 
such  artillery  as  he  could  not  move,  and 
fall  back  on  Victoria.  The  immediate 
advance  of  the  enemy  was  expected,  ^^as 
well  as  a  rise  of  water.  Prompt  move- 
ments are  therefore  highly  imiDortant.'^ 

A  panic  of  dreadful  grief  and  fear 
swept  over  the  town's  people.  The  last 
body  of  men  to  enter  the  Alamo  had  gone 
from  Gonzales ;  and,  as  in  old  Egypt, 
the  Angel  of  Death  had  touched  almost 


SAM   HOUSTOI^  83 

every  door.  The  women  cried  aloud, 
the  men  in  groui)s  spoke  in  gloomy 
whispers.  It  was  no  time  for  hesita- 
tion. Houston  arrested  the  messenger 
as  a  spy,  thus  restoring  a  little  order 
until  he  could  organize  the  few  troops  at 
hand,  and  sent  out  Deaf  Smith,  Karnes, 
and  Handy  to  go  as  near  as  possible  to 
Bexar,  and  report  to  him  again  in  three 
days.  He  reported  to  the  government : 
^^  March  13  I  found  upward  of  three 
hundred  men  in  camp,  without  organi- 
zation. .  .  .  Since  then  the  force  has  in- 
creased to  more  than  four  hundred.  .  .  . 
The  enclosed  order  to  Colonel  Fannin 
will  indicate  to  you  my  convictions  that 
...  we  cannot  maintain  sieges.  .  .  .  The 
force  under  my  command  here  was  such 
as  to  preclude  the  idea  of  meeting  the 
enemy.  .  .  .  The  projected  expedition  to 
Matamoras  has  already  cost  us  over  two 
hundred  and  thirty-seven  lives ;  and 
where  the  effects  are  to  end  none  can 
foresee.     Dr.  Grant's  party,  as  well  as 


84  SAM   HOUSTOIvr 

Colonel  Johnson,  have  been  murdered. 
.  .  .  Dr.  Grant  surrendered,  and  was  tied 
by  the  enemy. '^ 

The  three  scouts  met  Mrs.  Dickenson. 
Alone  on  horseback,  with  her  child  in 
her  arms,  she  had  been  despatched  by 
Santa  Anna,  bearing  an  insulting  procla- 
mation to  the  Texans.  Out  of  a  thicket 
crept  Travis's  negro  servant,  and  walked 
beside  her  horse.  Meeting  the  scouts, 
she  confirmed  the  horrible  news  and 
accentuated  the  particulars,  warning 
them  that  the  march  to  Gonzales  had 
begun.  Karnes  was  put  on  the  best 
horse  in  the  party,  and  posted  back. 
His  news  caused  the  panic  Houston  had 
tried  to  avert, —  a  panic  that  almost 
reached  the  point  of  a  stampede.  There 
was  no  mercy  to  be  looked  for  from 
Santa  Anna ;  and  he  was  advanc- 
ing !  Men,  women,  and  children,  a 
hurrying  crowd,  demanded  retreat ; 
and  on  horses  and  on  foot  the  tragic, 
weeping  caravan  began  its  march  across 


SAM   HOUvSTON  85 

the  prairie  at  night,  in  the  rain.  Hous- 
ton's force,  already  small,  was  further 
diminished  by  men  going  away  to  bring 
in  their  families  from  exposed  places ; 
and  there  was  nothing  to  do  but  to  con- 
duct the  people  to  some  point  where 
Fannin  could  join  him.  There  were  two 
government  wagons;  but  a  single  one 
brought  away  all  the  ammunition  and 
supplies  of  the  army  !  Spies  were  left 
to  watch  the  enemy  and  to  burn  the 
town,  and  the  Texans  were  lighted  for 
many  miles  on  their  journey  by  the 
flames  of  their  homes. 

On  the  15th  Houston  reported  his  re- 
treat to  the  government.  ^^  Other  im- 
portant intelligence  arrived  that  the 
army  of  Santa  Anna  .  .  .  was  to  proceed 
direct  to  Gonzales.  The  number  of  the 
enemy  .  .  .  was  represented  as  exceeding 
two  thousand  infantry.  Upon  this  state- 
ment ...  I  deemed  it  proper  to  fall 
back  ...  on  the  Colorado.  .  .  .  My 
morning  report  .  .  .  showed  three  hun- 


86  SAM   HOUSTON 

dred  and  seventy- four  effective  men, 
without  two  days'  provisions,  many 
without  arms,  and  others  without  am- 
munition. .  .  .  Detached  as  we  were, 
without  supplies,  .  .  .  ammunition,  or 
artillery,  and  remote  from  succor,  it 
would  have  been  madness  to  hazard 
a  contest.  ...  If  starved  out  and  the 
camp  broken  up,  there  was  no  hope  for 
the  future.  By  falling  back,  Texas  can 
rally.  ...  I  hope  to  reach  the  Colo- 
rado on  the  morrow,  and  collect  an  army 
in  a  short  time.  I  sent ...  to  Columbia 
this  morning  for  munitions  and  supplies 
to  be  sent  me  immediately,  and  to  order 
the  troops  at  Yelasco  to  join  me.  .  .  . 
Our  forces  must  not  be  shut  up  in  forts 
where  they  can  neither  be  supplied  with 
men  nor  provisions.  Long  aware  of  this 
fact,  I  directed  on  the  16th  of  January 
last  that  the  artillery  should  be  removed 
and  the  Alamo  blown  up  ;  but  it  was 
prevented  by  the  expedition  upon  Mata- 
moras,  the  author  of  all  oui^  misfortunes. 


I 


SAM   HOUSTON  87 

.  .  .  Enclosed  you  will  receive  the  ad- 
dress of  General  Santa  Anna,  sent  by  a 
negro  to  the  citizens.  .  .  .  Santa  Anna 
Tvas  in  Bexar  when  the  Alamo  wiis  taken. 
His  force  ...  is,  I  think,  only  five  or  six 
thousand.  .  .  .  Had  it  not  been  for  the 
council,  we  would  have  had  no  reverses. 
.  .  .  Gonzales  is  reduced  to  ashes  ! ' ' 

Fannin's  men  at  Goliad  were  chiefly 
volunteers  from  the  States,  —  Georgia 
troops  under  Ward  and  King,  the  Xew 
Orleans  and  Mobile  ^^ Greys,"  the  Ken- 
tucky ^-Mustangs,"  Tennesseeans  under 
Captain  Bradford,  the  '^Eed  Eovers," 
and  other  companies  fr'om  Alabama. 
Houston's  order  to  fall  back  reached 
Fannin  on  March  14.  He  immediately 
sent  a  courier  for  \Yard  and  King.  He 
sent  out  for  teams  also,  and  began  to 
dismount  his  guns.  He  had  sent  King 
to  rescue  helpless  women  and  children 
ahead  of  Urrea's  advance,  and  Ward  to 
rescue  King ;  and  now  he  waited  for 
them.     Dead  and  stripi)ed.  King  and  his 


88  SAM  HOUSTON 

men  lay  on  the  prairie,  the  food  of  beasts 

and  birds. 

At  last,  on  the  19th,  Fannin  began  his 
retreat,  but  only  so  fast  as  oxen  could 
travel.  Urrea  had  had  plenty  of  time  ; 
and,  before  the  first  day's  march  was 
over,  Fannin  and  his  men  were  sur- 
rounded in  the  open  prairie,  and  with- 
out water.  They  made  breastworks  of 
wagons,  and  fought  until  night, —  the 
battle  of  Coleta.  The  next  day  they 
surrendered,  ^^  prisoners  of  war,  accord- 
ing to  the  usages  of  the  most  civilized 
nations,"  and  were  marched  back  to 
Goliad.  On  the  21st  Ward  surrendered, 
reaching  Goliad  on  the  25th.  By  the 
evening  of  the  26th  they  were  all 
there,  relying  on  the  promises  of  the 
Mexican  officials  that  they  would  be 
paroled  and  returned  to  the  United 
States. 

There  was  a  flute  in  the  company, 
and  they  were  singing  ^'Home,  Sweet 
Home."      That   night  a  courier    ^^ex- 


I 


SAM   HOUSTON  89 

traordinary"  came  from  Santa  Anna. 
Services  of  four  American  physicians 
^yere  to  be  retained.  At  day- dawn  on 
March  27,  being  Palm  Sunday,  the 
l^risoners  were  marched  out  in  three  de- 
tachments under  three  different  excuses. 
They  were  going  to  be  sent  home,  they 
were  going  to  slaughter  beeves,  they 
were  going  to  make  room  in  the  fort 
for  Santa  Anna  !  Dr.  Shackelford  was 
in  the  tent  of  Colonel  Garay  ,•  ^ '  In 
about  an  hour  we  heard  the  report  of  a 
volley  of  small  arms  toward  the  river, 
and  to  the  east  of  the  fort.  ...  In  about 
fifteen  minutes  thereafter,  another  such 
volley  was  fired,  directly  south  of  us,  and 
in  front.  At  the  same  time  I  could  dis- 
tinguish the  heads  of  some  of  the  men 
through  the  boughs  of  some  peach-trees, 
and  could  hear  their  screams.''  .  .  . 

As  the  divisions  reached  their  dif- 
ferent places  of  execution,  they  were 
ordered  to  sit  down  with  their  backs  to 
the    guards.      One    incident :  a  young 


90  SAM  HOUSTON 

fellow  sprang  up,  crying:  ^^Boys,  they 
are  going  to  kill  ns  !  Die  with  your 
faces  to  them,  like  men  ! ' '  Another  : 
two  fellows  waved  their  caps,  and  cried, 
'  ^  Hurrah  for  Texas  ! '  ^  Some  tried  to 
escape,  but  were  cut  down  by  the  cav- 
alry or  shot.  In  all  about  twenty-seven 
got  away.  ^^For  an  hour  after  the  first 
firing,  the  ring  of  intermittent  shots 
smote  on  the  ear,  producing  on  the 
listener's  mind  a  terrible  picture  of  the 
flight  and  chase."  The  wounded  who 
had  been  brought  in  from  the  battle 
were  murdered  where  they  were. 
Colonel  Fannin  was  the  last.  He 
begged  to  be  shot  in  the  breast,  and  to 
be  decently  buried.  He  seated  himself 
in  the  chair,  and  tied  the  handkerchief 
over  his  own  eyes.  He  was  shot  in  the 
head  5  and,  like  the  rest  of  the  dead, 
his  body  was  stripped  ;  the  pile  —  three 
hundred  and  thirty  —  was  covered  with 
brush  that  Sunday  morning  at  Goliad, 
and  set  on  fire. 


SAM   HOUSTON  91 

Goliad  was  an  old  town,  dating  far 
back  into  a  Spanish  past  j  and  its  origi- 
nal name  had  been  ^'Espiritu  Santo.  ^^ 


YI. 

Santa  Anna,  now  sure  that  Texas 
was  conquered,  divided  his  force  into 
columns  to  occupy  the  country  :  Gaona, 
north  to  Nacogdoches ;  Sesma,  to  fol- 
low to  San  Felipe  ;  Filisola,  to  drive  the 
colonists  out  of  the  south. 

As  it  has  heen  expressed,  '^the  whole 
country  was  fleeing  east, " — '  ^  many  carts 
and  wagons  with  lone  families  and  three 
or  four  men  with  them"  :  men  who 
should  have  been  with  Houston  crawled 
across  the  prairies  like  black  ants.  Hous- 
ton was  retreating  slowly  and  warily, 
and  wondering  about  Fannin.  On  the 
17th  he  writes:  ^^If  you  can  by  any 
means  soothe  the  people  and  get  them 
to  remain,  they  shall  have  notice.  .  .  . 
I  shall  raise  a  company  of  spies  to-mor- 
row, to  range  the  country  from  this  to 
Gonzales.  Send  all  the  good  horses  you 
can  get." 

The  new  government  blundered,  tell- 


SAM   HOUSTON  93 

ing  the  people  to  be  quiet,  Tvhile  mov- 
ing to  Harrisbiu^g.  Houston  marched 
down  the  east  bank  of  the  Colorado 
to  Beason's  Crossing,  notice  having  been 
sent  to  all  families  west  to  cross  to  the 
east.  On  the  20th  Karnes,  capturing  a 
Mexican,  discovered  that  Sesma  with 
the  main  body  of  the  army  was  near 
the  west  bank  of  the  ri^'er.  Houston 
wrote  on  the  23d:  ^^I  am  not  easily 
depressed ;  but  before  my  God,  since 
we  parted,  I  have  found  the  darkest 
hours  of  my  life.  My  excitement  has 
been  so  great  that  for  forty -eight  houi's 
I  have  not  eaten  an  ounce,  nor  have 
I  slept.  I  was  in  constant  apprehension 
of  a  rout:  a  constant  panic  existed  in 
the  lines.  .  .  .  All  would  have  been 
well  ...  if  I  could  only  have  had  a 
moment  to  start  an  express  in  advance 
of  the  deserters.  .  .  .  This  moment  an 
express  .  .  .  states  that  Fannin  took  up 
his  retreat  on  Saturday  last,  and  a  few 
miles  from  Goliad  was  attacked  by  the 


94  SAJM   HOUSTOK 

Mexican  army.  .  .  .  The  result  is  not 
known.  .  .  .  Colonel  AYard's  command 
had  not  returned.  I  am  at  a  loss  to 
know  how  matters  stand.  .  .  .  The  re- 
treat of  the  government  will  have  a 
bad  effect  on  the  troops.  .  .  .  How  this 
news  will  affect  them  I  know  not." 

It  was  the  intention  of  Houston  to 
cross  the  Colorado  on  the  night  of  the 
27th  and  fight  Sesma,  but  on  the  25th 
there  came  the  news  of  the  defeat  of 
Fannin  and  Ward.  Afraid  of  a  panic, 
Houston  put  the  messenger  under  arrest 
as  a  possible  spy  ;  but  he  knew  that  the 
news  was  true,  and  that  any  demonstra- 
tion on  his  part,  even  a  victory,  would 
only  serve  to  draw  down  on  himself  the 
whole  Mexican  force  which  Fannin's 
capture  had  left  at  liberty  to  move 
in  any  direction.  The  fate  of  the 
country  hung  on  his  few  men :  he  must 
wait  to  strike  until  he  could  strike  a 
vital  blow.  It  was  a  dreary  retreat. 
The  rains  were  heavy,  the  army  was  de- 


SAM   HOUSTON  95 

pressed,  men  demanding  furloughs  to 
go  for  their  families,  men  walking  off. 
Sullenness,  ill -temper,  threats  of  mutiny, 
but  Houston  held  them  together.  He 
was  patient,  he  was  tireless,  he  worked 
at  any  task, —  a  mired  wagon,  a  stalled 
team,  anything  to  push  them  on  and 
to  prevent  discouragement.  Swearing, 
laughing,  joking,  gathering  up  refugees, 
sending  out  scouts,  allaying  distress, 
the  intrepid  leader  toiled  on,  reaching 
San  Felipe  on  the  west  bank  of  the 
Brazos  on  March  28.  From  heie  he 
proceeded  up  the  river  to  Mill  Creek. 
It  rained  all  night:  there  were  no  tents. 
^'Houston  spent  the  night  sitting  on 
his  saddle  with  a  blanket  over  him,  and 
his  feet  on  a  piece  of  wood."  But  he 
loyally  wi-ote  ^  ^  Headquarters  "  !  ^ '  On 
my  arrival  on  the  Brazos,  had  I  con- 
sulted the  wishes  of  all,  I  should  have 
been  like  the  ass  between  two  stacks  of 
hay.  ...  I  consulted  none.  ...  If  I  err, 
the    blame  is  mine.  .  .  .  For   Heaven's 


96  SAM  HOUSTON 

sake,  don't  drop  back  again  with  the 
seat  of  government!"  On  the  31st  the 
army  reached  Groce's  Landing,  where 
Houston  seized  the  steamboat  ^^Yellow- 
stone, ' '  in  case  of  need.  The  next  day 
they  moved  camp  to  the  Brazos  bottom. 
The  rains  continued,  the  river  rose  until 
the  army  was  on  an  island;  and  here, 
with  few  tents  and  scant  food,  they 
remained  until  April  12.  There  were 
some  stores  in  San  Felipe;  but  the  de- 
tachment there  mistook  a  herd  of  cat- 
tle for  Mexicans,  and  burned  the  town. 
From  Groce's  Landing,  Houston  writes: 
^^This  is  the  best  and  nearest  route  to 
Harrisburg  or  the  Bay,  .  .  .  and  will 
prevent  the  whole  country  passing  the 
Trinity.  .  .  .  The  re-enforcements  prom- 
ised to  our  army  never  arriving  has  kept 
us  in  a  mood  not  so  enviable  as  could 
be  wished  for.  ...  Do  let  me  know  what 
to  rely  on.  I  must  let  the  camp  know 
something,  and  I  want  everything  prom- 
ised to  be  realized  by  them.     I  hope  I 


SAM   H0UST0:N^  97 

can  keep  them  together.  I  have  thiis 
far  succeeded  beyond  my  hoj^es. ' '  Vice- 
President  Zavalla  and  Secretary  of  War 
Rusk  now  joined  the  army. 

Santa  Anna,  with  the  whole  population 
fleeing  before  him,  felt  no  hesitation  in 
pushing  on,  even  though  the  haste  scat- 
tered his  forces.  All  the  rivers  were 
up.  Filisola  was  at  the  Guadaloupe, 
and  Sesma  had  put  only  a  part  of  his 
army  across  the  Colorado,  when  Santa 
Anna,  with  his  staff,  reached  that  point. 
Here  he  left  General  Woll  to  cross  the 
artillery  and  forces  of  the  belated  Fili- 
sola, himself  hastening  on  to  San  Felipe, 
where  he  arrived  on  April  7.  Through 
the  sines  the  news  came  as  fast  as  horses 
to  Houston,  and  he  issued  an  order  to 
the  army. 

^^The  advance  of  the  enemy  is  at  San 
Felipe.  The  moment  for  which  we  have 
waited  ...  is  fast  approaching.  The  vic- 
tims of  the  Alamo  and  .  .  .  Goliad  call 
for  cool,  deliberate  vengeance.  .  .  .  The 


98  SAM  HOUSTON 

army  will  be  in  readiness  at  a  moment^  s 

warning. ' ' 

The  country  was  in  the  greatest  con- 
fusion and  distress.  The  secretary  of 
the  navy  writes :  ^^Kever  till  I  reached 
Trinity  have  I  desponded, —  I  will  not 
say  despaired.  If  Houston  has  retreated 
or  been  whipped,  nothing  can  save  the 
people  from  themselves.  .  .  .  He  must  be 
advised  of  the  state  of  the  waters,  and 
the  impossibility  of  the  people  cross- 
ing." 

Santa  Anna  had  failed  to  cross  the 
Brazos  at  San  Felipe,  the  crossing  being 
held,  and  went  down  the  river  to  Fort 
Bend,  where  Major  Martin,  with  forty 
men,  was  on  guard.  Martin  wrote  to 
Houston  on  the  8th :  ^^Two  men  arrived 
from  toward  San  Felipe.  .  .  .  Enemy 
must  be  by  this  time  in  that  town  in  full 
force.  .  .  .  One  division  .  .  .  has  passed 
above,  .  .  .  pointing  for  Nacogdoches  .  .  . 
other  column  below,  aiming  for  Mata- 
gorda.'^    On   the    12th    the    Mexicans 


SAM   HOUSTOX  99 

crossed,  below  Fort  Bend,  causing  Martin 
to  retreat.  On  the  same  day  Houston, 
who  had  been  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Brazos,  crossed  over,  being  sure,  though 
he  had  not  yet  heard  it,  that  the  Mexi- 
cans had  crossed. 

All  East  Texas  was  now  threatened. 
On  the  13th  the  acting  secretary  of  war 
wrote  to  Houston  :  ^  '■  There  is  nothing 
to  stop  the  march  to  this  place  [Harris- 
burg]  or  Galveston  in  twenty-four 
hours.  .  .  .  You  have  assured  the  gov- 
ernment that  the  enemy  should  never 
cross  the  Brazos,  .  .  .  but  they  find  your 
pledges  not  verified.  .  .  .  The  time  has 
now  arrived  when  we  are  to  determine 
whether  we  are  to  give  up  the  country." 
Houston  stopped  in  the  midst  of 
the  hurry  and  confusion  to  answer : 
'^Taunts  and  suggestions  have  been 
gratuitously  tendered  me.  ...  At  Gon- 
zales I  had  three  hundred  and  seventy- 
four  men,  without  supplies,  even  powder, 
balls,  or  arms.     At  Colorado,  with  seven 


100  SAM  HOUSTON 

hundred  men  without  discipline  or  time 
to  organize.  .  .  .  T>yo  days  since  my  effec- 
tive force  was  five  hundred  and  twenty- 
three  men.'^  '^The  Texan  army,'^  in 
the  words  of  Yoakum,  ^^was  a  hasty 
collection  of  farmers,  paid  and  fed  upon 
promises,  poorly  armed,  and  with  every 
variety  of  weapon,  and  up  to  this  time 
without  a  piece  of  artillery.  Add  to 
this  that  their  wives  and  children  were 
homeless  wanderers,  flying  without  food 
or  shelter,  .  .  .  and  we  must  admire  the 
sagacity  and  address  that  kept  so  many 
of  them  together  so  long." 

On  the  east  side  of  the  Brazos  the 
detached  troops,  and  the  only  artillery, 
two  six-pounders,  ^^The  Twin  Sisters," 
from  Cincinnati,  joined  Houston.  But 
no  ammunition  coming  with  the  cannon, 
it  had  to  be  sux)plied  by  breaking  up 
old  horseshoes  and  bits  of  iron,  and 
tying  them  up  in  bags.  In  his  report, 
Houston,  always  loyal,  referred  to  this  as 
'^ grape  and  canister."     Houston  could 


SAM   HOLSTOX  101 

strike  but  once,  and  had  reserved  him- 
self for  that  blow.  The  vital  spot  would 
be  where  Santa  Anna  was.  But  now  the 
time  had  come  when,  wisely  or  not,  he 
had  to  strike.  A  column  to  the  north, 
a  column  to  the  south,  a  column  cross- 
ing just  below  him  at  Fort  Bend ;  aiMl 
where  was  Santa  Anna ! 

In  his  complete  security,  Santa  Anna 
had  fatally  scattered  his  army.  Gaona 
and  his  column  were  lost  in  the  un- 
known country.  Urrea  had  gone  south, 
and  the  high  waters  and  dreadful  rains 
were  hamx)ering  every  move.  He  left 
Sesma  to  cross  the  army  at  Fort  Bend, 
himself  pushing  on  with  seven  hundred 
men  to  Harrisburg,  which  he  reached 
on  the  loth.  The  town  was  deserted 
save  for  two  men,  who  told  him  that 
Burnet  and  his  cabinet  had  left  for 
Galveston  Island.  Santa  Anna  burned 
the  to^^l,  and  marched  rapidly  to  Kew 
AVashington,  where  Biu^net  was  so  nearly 
caught  as  to  be  under  fire.     From  this 


102  SAM  housto:n^ 

point,  Santa  Anna  ordered  Cos  to  join 
him  by  forced  marclies.  The  Mexicans 
were  now  sonth  of  Houston;  between  him 
and  Galveston  Bay, — the  devil  and  the 
deep  sea  !  On  the  15th  Houston,  in  his 
turn,  set  out  to  make  a  forced  march 
to  Harrisburg  on  Buffalo  Bayou.  The 
streams  were  at  flood  ;  and  the  prairies, 
wet  and  filled  with  quicksands,  were 
sloughs  of  despond.  At  Harrisburg 
they  paused  to  rest ;  and  Deaf  Smith 
brought  in  two  prisoners,  one  bearing 
letters.  It  was  dusk,  and  by  torchlight 
Houston  read  despatches  addressed  to 
Santa  Anna  !  The  Mexican  butcher  was 
in  the  army  just  ahead  of  him. 

On  the  morning  of  the  19th  the  troops 
were  drawn  up,  and  Houston  addressed 
them.  ''The  army  will  cross,  and  we 
will  meet  the  enemy.  Some  of  us  may 
be  killed,  and  must  be  killed.  But, 
soldiers,  remember  the  Alamo !  the 
Alamo  !  the  Alamo  ! ' '  Eusk  tried  to 
speak,  but  stopped  :  his  voice  failed  him. 


SAM   H0UST0:JT  103 

^^I've  done!''  lie  said.  They  crossed 
the  brimming  bayou  on  rafts,  the  com- 
mander working  on  one  side,  the  secre- 
tary of  war  on  the  other.  The  sick 
were  left  with  a  guard.  Then  began  a 
swift  march  along  the  south  bank  of 
the  bayou  until  they  fell  down  for  weari- 
ness. A  halt  was  called,  and  for  two 
hours  they  rested.  At  dawn  on  the 
20th  they  pushed  on,  meeting  scouts  who 
reported  that  Santa  Anna  would  that 
day  march  from  Isew  Washington  up 
along  San  Jacinto  Bay  to  where  the  San 
Jacinto  Eiver  and  Buffalo  Bayou  flowed 
into  the  bay  at  Lynch' s  Ferry,  where  he 
would  cross  to  Anahuac,  thence  to  Gal- 
veston, and  in  the  persons  of  the  presi- 
dent and  cabinet  destroy  the  Texan 
government. 

About  breakfast-time,  scouts  reported 
that  the  enemy  was  approaching  Lynch' s 
Ferry.  An  advance  of  forty  men  foimd 
as  many  Mexicans  there,  who  fled  at  the 
approach  of  the  Texans. 


104  SAM   HOUSTON 

Eunning  parallel  with  the  bayou  was 
a  rise  of  ground ;  and  between  this  and 
the  bayou,  in  a  skirt  of  timber,  the 
Texans  had  camped.  Beyond  the  rise 
were  two  small  clusters  of  timber,  be- 
yond this  the  prairie.  On  the  20th  there 
was  skirmishing,  but  evening  found  the 
Texans  resting.  The  Mexicans  —  with 
the  San  Jacinto  marshes  in  their  rear, 
San  Jacinto  Bay  on  the  right,  Yince's 
Bayou  on  the  left,  the  open  prairie  and 
Houston  in  front  —  were  building  a 
flimsy  breastwork  of  saddles  and  baggage, 
as  Fannin  had  done.  And  in  the  exec- 
utive mansion,  in  the  capital  of  the 
United  States,  old  Andrew  Jackson  sat 
pondering,  with  the  map  of  Texas  before 
him.  His  finger  had  followed  the  re- 
treat, as  far  as  he  knew  it,  of  the  man 
who  had  been  his  pupil.  The  finger 
went  on  to  San  Jacinto,  and  paused. 
^ '  Here' s  the  place, ' '  he  said.  ^ '  If  Sam 
Houston's  worth  one  bawbee,  he'll  stand 
here,  and  give  'em  a  fight." 


YII. 

Thursday,  April  21,  dawned  clear. 
Houston  had  watched  that  night,  but 
toward  morning  had  fallen  asleep. 
About  nine  o'clock  a  large  body  of 
Mexicans  were  seen  marching  from  the 
direction  of  Vince's  bridge.  Houston, 
awakened,  at  once  suggested  a  doubt. 
This  was  a  portion  of  Santa  Anna's  army 
marched  round  behind  a  rise  in  the 
prairie  to  deceive  the  Texans.  Then 
he  called  Deaf  Smith  aside,  telling  him 
to  select  a  comj^anion  and  to  stay  within 
the  lines. 

The  anxious  officers  demanded  a 
council  of  war,  which  Houston  granted. 
Should  they  attack  the  enemy  or  await 
his  attack?  Opinion  was  divided.  It 
was  now  Deaf  Smith's  tui'u,  and  Hous- 
ton gave  him  his  secret  orders.  He  was 
to  take  axes,  which  had  been  provided, 
and  destroy  Yince's  bridge,  the  only 
escape  for  either  army. 


106  SAM  HOUSTON 

A  little  after  three  o'clock  Houston 
formed  his  line  behind  the  rise  of  ground, 
and  explained  his  plan  of  battle.  The 
solitary  fife  of  the  Texan  army  struck 
up  ^^  Will  you  come  to  the  bower  I  have 
shaded  for  yonV^  and,  in  the  broad 
light  of  day,  those  wild,  ragged,  starved 
phantoms  deployed  in  the  open  prairie 
without  shelter,  and  advanced  in  good 
order.  Smith,  riding  up,  reported  the 
bridge  destroyed.  It  was  announced  to 
the  men.  The  advance  quickened  to  a 
run.  Houston,  on  a  gaunt  gray  horse, 
tore  up  and  down,  waving  his  hat,  and 
yelling  curses  on  the  men  to  make  them 
hold  their  fire.  ^^The  Twin  Sisters" 
were  wheeled  and  fired,  the  line  paused 
to  deliver  one  deadly  volley,  then  ^^Ee- 
member  the  Alamo  !'^  ^^Eemember 
Goliad!'^  and  the  Texans  sprang  for- 
ward on  their  long- desired  prey. 

On  that  far-spent  day,  Santa  Anna  had 
given  up  all  thought  of  battle,  and  was 
asleep  in  his  tent.     Cos  had  arrived  by 


SAM   HOUSTON  107 

forced  marches,  and  liis  meu  T\'ere  tired. 
The  rest  of  the  army  were  cutting  wood, 
cooking,  watering  horses,  when  the 
Texans  emerged  from  their  ^ '  bower.  ^^ 
There  was  the  wildest  confusion,  the 
most  dreadful  dismay,  orders  to  fire, 
orders  to  lie  down.  They  had  only 
time  to  give  one  feeble  volley  before 
death  was  on  them.  Clubbed  rifles  and 
bowie-knives,  whose  originator  had  been 
murdered  in  the  Alamo,  made  cruelly 
short  work  with  the  struggling  mass. 
Many  pleaded,  ^'Me  no  Alamo,  me  no 
Alamo  !"  But  it  was  not  the  day  of 
mercy.  Houston  was  striking, — striking 
vitally.  In  fifteen  short  minutes  the 
Mexican  army  was  running  across  the 
prairie  or  sinking  in  the  marshes,  with 
the  Texans  in  pursuit.  Santa  Anna 
seized  a  horse  and  fled.  Almonte  stuck 
to  his  post,  rallied  a  few  hundred, 
and  surrendered.  Houston's  ankle  was 
broken,  and  his  horse  wounded  in  the 
charge ;   but   he  remained  on  the  field 


108  SAM   HOUSTON 

until  his  horse  fell  under  him.     The  pur- 
suit lasted  until  dark. 

The  Texan  army  numbered  seven  hun- 
dred and  forty  men.  Six  were  killed, 
and  twenty-five  wounded.  Six  hundred 
and  thirty  Mexicans  were  killed,  two 
hundred  wounded,  and  more  than  seven 
hundred  were  taken  prisoners.  Santa 
Anna  was  captured  the  next  day  by 
James  Sylvester.  Having  in  his  flight 
done  away  with  his  uniform,  he  declared 
himself  a  private  soldier,  and  he  came 
into  camp  riding  behind  one  of  the  sol- 
diers. Sylvester  did  not  know  whom  he 
had  captured  until  the  Mexican  prisoners 
murmured  in  awed  tones,  *^E1  Presi- 
dente!^^  Houston,  suffering  with  his 
wound,  and  sleeping  under  a  tree,  was 
wakened,  and  raised  on  his  elbow  to  find 
the  Mexican  general,  a  little  pale  man, 
in  dirty  linen  trousers,  a  blue  cotton 
jacket,  and  red  worsted  slippers,  stand- 
ing before  him. 

Santa  Anna  said,  '^I  am  General  An- 


SAM  HOUSTON  109 

toiiio  Lopez  de  Santa  Anna,  a  prisoner 
of  var,  at  your  service."  Houston 
waved  liis  hand.  Santa  Anna  sat  down 
on  a  tool- chest,  and  Almonte  was  sent 
for  as  interpreter.  The  Texans  drew 
near  j  and  Santa  Anna,  trembling,  almost 
ciying,  begged  for  opium,  after  which 
lie  was  able  to  control  himself  He  now 
demanded  to  be  treated  as  a  prisoner  of 
war,  and  to  have  his  release  arranged  for 
immediately. 

^^That  man  who  has  conquered  the 
Xapoleon  of  the  \yest,'^  said  the  little 
person  in  the  woollen  slippers,  ^^is  born 
to  no  common  destiny.  He  should  now 
be  generous  to  the  vanquished. ' ' 

Houston  answered,  '^  There  was  no 
generosity  at  the  Alamo. ' ' 

^'That  was  taken  by  assault.'' 

' '  And  the  men  who  surrendered  under 
Fannin  ? ' ' 

' '  Urrea  told  me  that  Fannin  had  been 
vanquished,  and  my  government  had 
ordered  that  every  rebel  taken  armed 
should  be  shot.'' 


110  SAM   HOUSTON 

'^You  are  yourself  the  government. '' 

^^I  have  the  orders  of  Congress/' 
Santa  Anna  declared.  ^^XJrrea  de- 
ceived me.  He  had  no  right  to  make 
terms  with  Fannin  ;  and,  when  I  am  free, 
he  shall  suffer. ' ' 

Houston  listened,  then  said  that  the 
power  to  make  terms  belonged  to  the 
Texan  government.  An  armistice  was 
agreed  to,  and  Deaf  Smith  was  sent  with 
orders  to  the  Mexican  generals  to  retire. 
Santa  Anna  was  then  allowed  to  have 
his  own  tent,  servants,  and  baggage, 
which  had  not  been  touched.  Houston 
also  had  him  guarded  from  the  indignant 
Texans,  who  were  talking  angrily  of  im- 
mediate execution. 

At  Galveston  Island,  so  great  was  the 
panic,  that  boats  were  loaded  with 
refugees  ready  to  sail,  when  the  as- 
tounding news  came  that  Houston  had 
captured  Santa  Anna  and  his  whole 
army,  and  desired  the  presence  of  the 
of&cials  to  negotiate  terms.     Houston's 


SAM  HOUSTON  111 

suggestions  for  these  terms  were  :  recog- 
nition by  Mexico  of  Texan  indepen- 
dence, the  Kio  Grande  as  boundary,  in- 
demnity for  Texan  losses,  immediate 
withdrawal  of  all  Mexican  troops,  cessa- 
tion of  hostilities,  retention  of  Santa 
Anna  and  his  officei^  until  Mexico  rati- 
fied the  treaty.  He  also  suggested  that 
envoys  be  sent  to  the  United  States  to 
secure  mediation  between  Texas  and 
Mexico. 

Because  of  his  wound,  Houston  went 
to  New  Orleans,  Eusk  taking  command 
of  the  army  and  M.  B.  Lamar  becoming 
secretary  of  war.  Houston  arrived  in 
New  Orleans  on  May  11,  with  his  wound 
in  bad  condition.  His  welcome  was  most 
enthusiastic.  Many  pieces  of  bone  were 
taken  from  his  ankle,  and  his  recovery 
was  slow.  As  soon  as  possible,  however, 
he  returned  to  Texas,  arriving  at  San 
Augustine  on  July  5. 


Yni. 

In  the  thirty  years  from  Burr  to  Hous- 
ton the  majority  in  the  United  States 
had  been  converted  to  the  idea  of  ^^  ex- 
tending the  area  of  freedom/^  and  now 
looked  with  desire  not  only  on  the  thou- 
sands of  square  miles  of  Texas,  hut 
across  the  continent  out  to  the  far  Pa- 
cific. The  talk  of  annexation  was  open 
and  earnest  j  and  the  important  victory 
of  San  Jacinto  excited  others  besides  the 
old  little  man  in  E'ew  York,  whose  mag- 
netic eyes  could  yet  blaze  over  the  suc- 
cess of  the  thing  he  had  failed  to  do. 
Public  meetings  were  held  in  various 
cities,  and  a  commissioner  was  sent  to 
Texas. 

Texas  was  to  Houston  as  his  own 
child.  He  had  saved  her.  His  love 
for  her  was  deep,  and  his  pride  in  and 
for  her  was  sensitive.  As  a  State,  she 
would  be  enormous  ;  as  an  independent 
country,  without  allies,  without  money, 


SAM   HOUSTON  113 

with  a  powerful  enemy  on  the  south, 
a  wilderness  and  savages  on  the  west,  on 
the  south-east  a  coast  that  offered  a  safe 
harbor  to  a  hostile  fleet, — Houston  felt 
that  the  new  born  republic  was  small, 
and  her  position  an  anxious  one.  Added 
to  this,  she  was  young  and  headstrong, 
with  a  population  rendered  almost  un- 
manageable by  the  influx  of  adventurers 
during  the  revolution.  But  he  was  as 
patient  and  persistent  in  peace  as  he  had 
been  in  war.  If  the  wagon  of  State 
mired,  he  put  his  shoulder  to  the  muddy 
wheel.  If  the  political  team  balked,  he 
laid  his  hand  on  the  patched  bridle.  If 
his  annexation  artillery  lacked  ammu- 
nition, he  tied  up  England  and  France 
in  bags,  and  shot  them  into  the  United 
States  Senate  as  ^  '■  grape  and  canister.  - ' 
Keeping  always  a  brave  front  to  the 
world,  he  made  no  sign  of  defeat.  He 
was  too  strong  not  to  make  enemies,  and 
had  too  much  power  to  fear  opj^osition. 
He    had    great  humor  and   much   elo- 


114  SAM  HOUSTON 

quence  ;  and  the  known  recklessness  of 
liis  masterful,  passionate  temper  made 
people  careful.  He  was  too  shrewd, 
however,  not  to  know  how  and  when  to 
control  his  temper,  which  made  it  all  the 
more  dangerous  when  he  did  let  it  go ; 
and  nothing  attests  more  his  position  in 
Texas  than  that  he  declined  to  fight 
duels.  Nor  would  he  flatter  the  people. 
However  he  praised  his  Texas  to  the 
world,  to  her  face  he  told  her  what  he 
thought.  He  would  laugh  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  most  furious  mobs,  and  abuse 
and  ridicule  them.  Those  who  would 
follow  he  attached  to  himself  with  the 
strongest  personal  bonds.  Those  who 
opposed,  he  satirized  and  ridiculed 
ruthlessly.  He  remembered  an  affront 
as  carefully  as  he  did  a  kindness,  and 
never  failed  to  return  either.  His 
strongest  hold  over  the  people,  however, 
was  his  love  for  them.  They  knew  it, 
had  faith  in  it,  and  returned  it. 

^^His  sly  jokes,''   says   Mr.    Forney, 


SAM   HOUSTON  115 

''his  winning  ways,  his  roving  habits,  his 
battles,  his  escapades,  and  his  love  for 
the  Union  are  still  food  for  fireside 
gossip.  ...  In  his  broad- brimmed  som- 
brero, his  large  cane,  his  ruffles  and  his 
rings,  his  lofty  air,  and  extra  politeness 
to  men  and  women,  even  his  vanity  was 
a  study  ;  and  nobody  complained  of  it." 

So  much  has  been  said  of  Houston's 
vanity  that  it  is  pleasant  to  find  an 
English  traveller  in  Texas,  Mrs.  M.  C. 
Houston,  saying,  ^^Kever  have  I  seen  a 
man  who  had  ^done'  not  alone  ^the 
State,'  but  the  cause  of  humanity  such 
^good  service  in  his  day,'  who  was  so 
simple  and  unobtrusive  in  his  manner, 
and  who  seemed  to  think  so  little  of 
himself ' ' 

Sitting  in  front  of  a  shop,  or  walking, 
to  any  it  would  be:  ^^How  d'ye  do, 
colonel?  How's  madam?  Bad  weath- 
er for  the  ladies."  Another  says : 
^^He  generally  abstained  from  much 
talking.     No  man  could  better  be  silent 


116  SAM  HOUSTON 

when  he  wished  to  be."  Further,  we 
are  told  that  ^^  he  carried  his  liquor 
with  dignity,"  and  seldom  to  any  excess 
after  his  second  marriage. 

And  now  he  would  require  all  his 
powers.  Texas  was  in  a  state  of  mild 
anarchy.  Putting  aside  the  treaty,  the 
army  had  detained  Santa  Anna,  and 
now  demanded  him  for  court-martial. 
Houston  sent  a  sharp  protest,  and  Santa 
Anna  ' '  embraced  the  bearer  as  one  who 
had  saved  his  life. "  A  general  election 
being  ordered  to  replace  the  provisional 
government,  the  people  put  aside  the 
regular  candidates.  Smith  and  Austin, 
and  in  mass  meetings  demanded  Hous- 
ton. Even  his  inauguration  was  pushed 
forward,  so  that  he  was  installed  October 
22,  ahead  of  time.  He  appointed  his 
presidential  competitors  to  places  in  his 
cabinet,  and  at  once  sent  ministers  to 
England,  France,  and  the  United  States. 

Santa  Anna  was  to  be  saved  once 
more.     Houston   saw  the  forlorn  little 


SAM  HOUSTON  117 

prisoner,  who  wept  on  the  breast  of  his 
big  captor  ;  arranged  that  he  be  invited 
by  President  Jackson  to  Washington  ; 
overruled  the  Texas  Congress,  and  for- 
warded the  troublesome  person. 

There  were  army,  navy,  judiciary,  to 
be  supported,  and  an  empty  treasury  : 
bonds  were  issued  to  the  amount  of 
$5, 000, 000  ;  a  loan  was  to  be  made  in  the 
United  States  ;  and  import  duties  fixed. 
In  May,  1837,  Congress  reassembling, 
Houston  was  able  to  say  to  them  that 
Texas  had  been  recognized  as  an  inde- 
pendent republic  j  that  England  was 
friendly,  and  France  had  sent  a  commis- 
sioner. Mexico  was  still  hostile ;  but 
Texas  was  confident.  They  must  legis- 
late as  for  a  permanent  system.  The 
army  he  could  not  praise.  It  had  be- 
come a  menace,  and  he  had  furloughed 
it.  Congress  voted  for  annexation,  and 
a  special  agent  was  sent  to  Washington. 

There  the  question  was  an  exciting 
one.     The  debate  was  angry,  the  ol)jec- 


118  SAM  HOUSTON 

tion  was  strenuous.  This  really  would 
be  the  addition  to  the  South  which  had 
been  feared  in  the  Louisiana  purchase. 
Texas  threatened  to  be  three  or  four 
States,  with  a  great  increase  of  Southern 
representation  j  and,  instead  of  ^^extend- 
ing the  area  of  freedom/'  it  would  ex- 
tend the  area  of  slavery.  Everything 
that  had  ever  been  said  against  the 
people  of  Texas  was  revived.  From 
Sam  Houston,  and,  through  him,  Andrew 
Jackson,  down  to  the  smallest  boy  in  the 
territory,  all  were  filibusters,  all  were 
combined  in  a  vast  intrigue  that  would 
bring  untold  trouble  and  expense  on  the 
United  States  5  and  Yan  Buren  declined 
annexation. 

Texas  refused,  the  request  for  annexa- 
tion was  withdrawn  ;  and  Houston  said, 
Lower  your  import  duties,  make  com- 
merce easy  to  France  and  England,  and 
the  United  States  must  reflect,  and 
^ legislate  as  for  a  permanent  system." 
Texas  must  be  able  to  stand  alone  before 


SAM   HOUSTOX  119 

she  could  commaud  respect.  The  loan, 
which  later  had  to  be  abandoned,  had 
not  been  negotiated ;  and  there  was  no 
demand  for  Texas  land.  The  government 
was  so  poor  that  the  public  officers  had 
no  salaries,  and  Houston  had  to  give  his 
personal  note  in  order  to  obtain  public 
supplies.  In  spite  of  this,  he  vetoed  the 
issue  of  promissory  notes  for  $1, 000, 000, 
as  half  that  amount  was  all  that  could  be 
kept  at  par.  ^^The  record  of  Texas 
finances,"  Mr.  Williams  says,  ^^was  a 
creditable  one  ;  and  it  was  Houston's 
firm  hand  and  sagacious  judgment .  .  . 
which  kept  down  the  indebtedness,  and 
enabled  the  government  to  carry  out  its 
operations  without  collapse." 

Not  eligible  for  succeeding  terms, 
Houston  had  to  stand  aside,  and,  free  to 
travel,  visited  the  United  States  to  some 
purpose.  In  May,  1840,  in  Alabama 
he  married  Miss  Margaret  Moffett  Lea, 
who  at  last  gave  to  his  wandering  days 
a  home   and  happiness.     In  Texas  the 


120  SAM  HOUSTON 

contest  for  the  second  term  in  the  presi- 
dency was  violent.  Of  the  three  candi- 
dates, one  was  drowned,  the  second  com- 
mitted suicide,  the  third,  M.  B.  Lamar, 
was  inaugurated  December,  1838.  The 
first  term  had  been  for  two  years. 
After  this  the  term  would  be  three  years, 
so  that  Lamar  would  be  in  until  1841. 
And  Houston,  a  member  of  Congress, 
saw  his  policy  reversed, — saw  once  more 
the  dream  of  the  ^' South-western  Em- 
pire ^ '  rise,  and  the  effort  made  to  annex 
New  Mexico  by  sending  a  peaceful  but 
carefully  armed  expedition  to  Santa  Fe. 
Lamar's  opposition  to  annexation  fell 
in  with  Houston's  policy  at  that  mo- 
ment ;  but,  ^  ^  sitting  on  a  back  bench, 
whittling,''  Houston  so  effectively  ridi- 
culed the  whole  plan  of  the  expedition 
that,  though  they  marched,  Congress  did 
not  bear  the  expense.  Do  what  he 
would,  however,  things  went  from  bad 
to  worse,  until  Lamar  retired,  sick,  and 
Congress  threatened  to  adjourn  perma- 


SAM   HOUSTON  121 

nently.  A  speech  of  Houston's  stopped 
this  ;  and  in  December,  1841,  he  was  re- 
elected president  as  the  only  man  who 
could  save  the  country.  He  sent  a  sting- 
ing message  to  Congress,  where  he  had 
many  opponents,  then  set  about  doing 
all  his  work  over  again.  Summing  up 
the  late  administration,  he  showed  that 
the  Mexicans  were  still  enemies,  the 
Indians  had  been  turned  into  enemies, 
the  treasury  was  empty,  the  debt  quad- 
rupled, the  fate  of  the  Santa  Fe  expedi- 
tion unknown,  and  ^^we  are  not  only 
without  money,  but  without  credit,  and, 
for  want  of  punctuality,  without  charac- 
ter." He  reduced  his  own  and  all  other 
salaries  one-half,  useless  offices  he  abol- 
ished, and  all  claims  he  postponed.  To 
a  claimant  he  said,  ^'If  it  would  do 
you  any  good,  colonel,  I'  d  give  you  half 
my  present  fortune  :  but  my  only  posses- 
sions are  a  stud  horse,  eating  his  head  off 
in  the  stable,  and  a  solitary  game-cock, 
without  a  hen  to  lay  an  egg. ' ' 


IX. 

In  the  United  States,  annexation  was 
arrayed  chiefly  on  slavery  and  anti-slav- 
ery lines  ;  and  leaders  who  in  earlier  days 
had  been  eager  for  it  were  now  against 
it.  Though  with  some  of  these  men 
slavery  would  weigh  certainly,  and  with 
others  possibly,  it  is  hard  not  to  believe 
that  with  some  Andrew  Jackson  weighed 
also.  France  and  England,  who  were 
willing  to  befriend  Texas  if  she  re- 
mained independent,  opposed  annexa- 
tion. Houston  prophesied  that,  if  an- 
nexation were  finally  defeated  by  fac- 
tions, ^^a  rival  power  will  soon  be 
built  up,  and  the  Pacific  as  well  as  the 
Atlantic  will  be  component  parts  of 
Texas  in  thirty  years  from  this  date.  .  .  . 
All  the  powers  which  either  envy  or  fear 
the  United  States  would  use  all  reason- 
able exertions  to  build  us  up  as  the  only 
rival  power  that  can  ever  exist  on  this 
continent.''     He  fui-ther  declared  that 


SAM   HOUSTON  123 

the  Californias  and  New  Mexico — in 
fact,  all  that  was  finally  brought  in  by  the 
Mexican  War  —  would  be  a  part  of  this 
country  of  Texas ;  ending,  ^^They  must 
come  :  it  is  impossible  to  look  on  the  map 
of  North  America,  and  not  perceive  the 
rationale  of  the  project."  At  home  his 
policy  was  :  Texas  must  keep  peace  with 
Mexico,  so  silencing  the  cry  of  Mexican 
War  ;  must  keep  the  friendship  of  Eng- 
land and  France,  so  causing  jealousy  in 
the  United  States.  ^^So  delicate  and 
hazardous  was  the  situation,''  says  Mr. 
Brown,  '  ^  he  could  scarcely  take  his  whole 
Congress  into  his  fullest  confidence,  lest, 
by  some  hasty  action  or  speech,  publicity 
might  betray  the  necessary  coquetry  of 
Texas  with  these  three  jealous  powers." 
And  at  this  inauspicious  moment, 
January,  1842,  the  bad  news  came  from 
Santa  Fe.  The  expedition  was  looked 
on  as  invasion  by  Mexico,  and  had  been 
captured.  It  was  maddening  ;  and,  in 
the  excitement,  Congress  passed  an  act, 


124  SAM  HOUSTOK 

extending  the  boundaries  of  Texas  to  in- 
clude ^'two-thirds  of  the  territory  of 
Mexico,  with  two  millions  of  her  inhab- 
itants/^ revealing  the  object  of  the 
peaceful  expedition.  Houston  vetoed 
it  as  a  ''legislative  jest.' ^  It  was  passed 
over  his  veto,  and,  as  he  warned  them, 
seriously  affected  all  diplomatic  re- 
lations. 

Santa  Anna,  now  realizing  that  peace 
would  forward  annexation,  sent  in  March 
an  expedition  against  San  Antonio. 
This  was  just  as  Houston,  all  things 
seeming  favorable,  had  renewed  the 
proposition  for  annexation  ;  and  he,  see- 
ing through  Santa  Anna's  policy,  for- 
bade pursuit  of  the  Mexican  army,  who 
after  two  days'  plundering  had  retired. 
But  Texas  flew  to  arms,  demanding 
invasion  of  Mexico.  An  extra  session 
of  Congress  was  called.  Houston  ex- 
plained the  enormous  cost  of  such  an 
expedition,  and  the  poverty  of  the 
country.      As    answer.    Congress   voted 


SAM   HOUSTON  125 

him  head  of  tlie  army  with  unlimited 
powers,  and  ten  million  acres  of  land 
for  expenses.  Houston  vetoed  the  bill. 
The  people  were  furious,  his  enemies 
declaring  his  veto  ^^ Indian  cunning," 
—  he  had  made  the  people  offer  him 
dictative  powers,  that  he  might  decline 
them  ,•  and  assassination  was  threatened. 

A  larger  expedition  coming  to  San 
Antonio  in  the  autumn,  the  people  again 
demanded  invasion.  Houston  sent  an 
army.  The  Mexicans  retreated.  The 
Texans  demanded  to  follow  ;  and,  from 
the  strange,  wandering  route  which  the 
commander  pursued,  it  is  shrewdly  sus- 
pected that  the  president  had  ordered 
the  earliest  possible  dissipation  of  the 
war  ardor. 

The  latest  application  for  annexation 
had  been  refused  ;  and  in  1843  Houston 
ordered  the  Texan  minister  to  with- 
draw it  absolutely,  as  Texas  now  felt 
herself  safe  in  the  friendliness  of  the 
European  powers.     Mexico  now  declared 


126  SAM   HOUSTON 

openly  that  annexation  would  be  con- 
sidered a  declaration  of  war.  President 
Tyler  begged  Houston  to  renew  the  ap- 
plication. Houston  hesitated.  Would 
the  United  States  protect  Texas  during 
negotiations?  The  answer  was,  ^^The 
majority  of  the  Senate  were  in  favor  of 
the  treaty."  Houston  asked  the  same 
question  of  the  United  States  agent  in 
Texas,  who  answered  that  no  interfer- 
ence would  be  permitted.  Houston  sent 
a  secret  message  to  the  Texan  Congress, 
explaining,  and  asking  for  appropria- 
tion to  send  a  special  agent  to  Washing- 
ton 5  and  J.  Pinkney  Henderson  was 
sent. 

In  February,  1844,  Houston  wrote  to 
Andrew  Jackson  :  ^  ^  Now,  my  venerated 
friend,  .  .  Texas  is  presented  to  the 
United  States  as  a  bride  adorned  for  her 
espousal.  But  if,  now  so  confident  of 
the  union,  she  should  be  rejected,  her 
mortification  would  be  indescribable. 
Were  she  now  to    be  spurned,  .  .  .  she 


SAM   HOUSTON  127 

would  seek  some  other  friend.  .  .  .  She 
could  not  ponder  long.  ...  To  postpone 
it  to  make  a  President,  ...  let  them 
beware.''  A  Presidential  election  was 
pending  in  the  United  States.  The  two 
applicants  for  nomination,  Clay  and 
Yan  Buren,  both  opposed  annexation ; 
and  they  had  influence  enough  to  cause 
the  treaty  to  be  rejected.  Texas  heard 
the  news  with  ^inexpressible  chagrin," 
Mexico  with  joy  and  threats. 

For  the  moment  Texas  was  without  a 
friend,  England  and  France  having  pro- 
tested against  annexation.  To  private 
assui-ances  of  the  inevitableness  of  annex- 
ation, Houston  answered,  ^^  Texas  is  free 
from  all  involvements  and  pledges  ;  and 
her  future  course,  I  trust,  will  be 
marked  by  a  proper  regard  for  her  true 
interests.  My  decided  opinion  is  that 
she  should  maintain  her  present  posi- 
tion, and  act  aside  from  every  consider- 
ation but  that  of  her  own  nationality." 

The  Texas  minister  was  recalled  from 


128  SAM   HOUSTON 

Washington  ;  and  England  and  France  at 
once  made  a  i^roj^osition  that^  on  Texas 
pledging  herself  not  to  unite  with  any 
other  nation,  the  powers  would  compel 
Mexico  to  keep  the  peace.  This  roused 
the  United  States.  Van  Buren  was 
dropped  by  the  Democratic  party,  Clay 
was  once  more  defeated,  and  Polk  elected 
on  the  cry  of  Texas. 

Houston's  term  ended  December,  1844. 
He  could  not  again  be  elected  j  but  the 
people  elected  his  candidate,  Anson 
Jones.  Houston,  setting  out  on  a  jour- 
ney, ^^came  into  my  room,"  wrote 
Ashbel  Smith,  ^^  booted,  spurred,  whip 
in  hand.  Said  he,  ^Saxe  Weimar  piis 
horse]  is  at  the  door,  saddled.  I  have 
come  to  leave  Houston's  last  words  with 
you.  If  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  shall  not  by  the  4th  of  March  pass 
some  measure  of  annexation  which  Texas 
can  with  honor  accede  to,  Houston  will 
take  the  stump  against  annexation  for  all 
time  to  come.'  Without  another  word, 
embracing  after  his  fashion,  he  left." 


SAM   HOUSTOX  129 

Houston's  rigid  economy  and  absolute 
honesty  rendered  Texas  soheut.  He 
had  not  only  paid  his  own  way,  but  had 
paid  the  debts  of  the  preceding  adminis- 
tration. In  his  last  speech  as  president, 
he  once  more  advised  that  they  legislate 
as  for  a  permanent  system.  Houston 
has  been  accused  of  being  a  filibuster  to 
annex  Texas,  then  of  ha\ang  been 
^^ bought  by  British  gold''  to  stand 
against  annexation.  He  could  see  both 
visions  ;  and  his  patron,  Andrew  Jack- 
son, had  heard  at  first  hand  the  dream  of 
Aaron  Burr.  Houston  was  too  practical, 
however,  to  follow  dreams,  though  at 
the  last  he  was  not  quite  sure  that  the 
United  States  would  be  the  best  home 
for  Texas. 

The  joint  resolution  for  the  annexa- 
tion passed  the  House  in  February,  1815, 
and  the  Senate  on  March  1 ;  and  on  the 
same  day  Tyler  affixed  his  signature. 
In  Texas  a  convention  was  called  for 
July  4,  to  decide  the  issue.     On  June  2 


130  SAM  housto:n' 

the  British  charge  in  Texas  presented 
preliminary  articles  signed  by  Mexico, 
acknowledging  Texan  independence  if 
she  would  abjure  annexation.  On  June 
4  a  proclamation  was  issued  that  Texas 
now  had  the  choice  of  guaranteed  inde- 
pendence or  of  becoming  a  State  of  the 
American  Union.  The  convention  de- 
cided for  annexation  ;  and  on  December 
22,  1845,  the  Eepublic  of  Texas  ceased  to 
exist. 

One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  Texas  legis- 
lature was  to  elect  Houston  and  Eusk 
senators,  putting  on  record  that,  knowing 
all,  they  pinned  their  faith  to  ^^  Old 
Sam  Jacinto.^  ^  His  advent  to  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  caused  much  com- 
ment. An  eye-witness,  Mr.  Dyer,  de- 
scribes him:  ^^He  was  large  of  frame, 
of  stately  carriage  and  dignified  de- 
meanor, and  had  a  lion-like  counte- 
nance, capable  of  expressing  the  fiercest 
passions.  .  .  .  The  conspicuous  features 
of  his  dress  were   a  military  cap  and 


SAM   HOUSTON  131 

a  short  military  cloak  of  fine  blue 
broadcloth  ^ith  a  blood-red  lining. 
Afterwards  I  occasionally  met  him, 
vhen  he  wore  a  vast  and  picturesque 
sombrero  and  a  Mexican  blanket.  .  .  . 
[In  the  Senate]  he  would  sit  and  whittle, 
and  at  the  same  time  keep  up  a  mutter- 
ing of  discontent  at  the  long-winded 
speakers,  whom  he  would  sometimes 
curse  for  their  intolerable  verbosity.  .  .  . 
He  had  a  chivalrous  regard  for  women. 
...  It  was  a  matter  of  common  jocose 
remark  that,  if  ^  Old  Sam  Jacinto  should 
ever  become  President,  he'd  have  a 
cabinet  of  women.'  General  Houston 
impressed  me  as  a  lonely,  melancholy 
man.''  All  this  whittling  was  making 
toys,  still  preserved,  for  his  own  and 
other  people's  children. 

He  allied  himself  with  the  old  Union 
Democracy  of  Jackson,  and  held  extreme 
views  as  to  incorporating  Mexican  terri- 
tory, longing  by  some  method  to  divert 
the  lightning  of  the  slavery  storm.     He 


132  SAM   H0UST0:N" 

voted  for  the  compromise  of  1850,  op- 
posed violently  in  1854  the  Kansas- 
Nebraska  bill  doing  away  with  the 
Missouri  Compromise.  ^^  Abrogate  or 
disannul  it,"  he  said,  ^'and  you  exas- 
perate the  public  mind.  .  .  .  My  word 
for  it,  we  shall  realize  scenes  of  agitation 
which  are  rumbling  in  the  distance  now. 
.  .  .  Sir,  if  this  repeal  takes  place,  I  will 
have  seen  the  commencement  of  this  agi- 
tation ;  but  the  youngest  child  now  born, 
I  am  api)rehensive,  will  not  live  to  wit- 
ness its  termination.  "  Houston  was  al- 
ways the  friend  of  the  Indian,  and  his 
utterances  on  this  subject  are  worth 
reading.  In  1856  there  was  talk  of 
Houston  for  the  Presidency,  but  it  was 
not  seriously  considered.  His  great  sor- 
row was  the  widening  gulf  between  the 
North  and  the  South.  He  said:  '^Let 
the  gentlemen  of  the  North  cease  to  agi- 
tate the  subject  of  our  Southern  institu- 
tions. They  are  ours,  they  were  theirs. 
.  .  .  Will   you    throw    our   slaves   back 


SAM   HOUSTON  133 

again  into  barbarism,  or  will  you  turn 
them  loose  ou  the  South!  .  .  .  Slavery 
has  descended  to  us.''  .  .  .  His  opposi- 
tion to  the  extreme  Southern  party 
brought  down  on  him  much  harsh  criti- 
cism, and  lost  for  him  the  election  as 
governor  of  Texas  in  1857.  The  old 
man  wanted  it,  but  only  as  taking  him 
home.  Under  promise  to  his  wife,  he 
went  every  Sunday  to  the  Baptist 
church,  wearing  his  blanket  and  whit- 
tling through  the  whole  service,  making 
afterward  a  careful  summary  of  the 
sermon  and  sending  it  to  her.  At  last 
a  sermon  on  the  text,  ^^  Better  is  he 
that  ruleth  his  own  spirit  than  he  that 
taketh  a  city, ' '  finished  his  conversion  ; 
but  he  waited  until  he  got  home  to  make 
his  public  profession. 


Superseded  in  the  Senate  by  a  se- 
cessionist, Houston  found  himself  called 
to  lead  the  Union  party  in  Texas.  He 
was  nominated  for  governor  by  acclama- 
tion. The  old  war-horse  sniffed  the 
battle  from  afar;  and  then  followed  a 
campaign  that  must  have  delighted  his 
heart, —  once  more  with  the  breadth  of 
the  prairies  all  about  him,  once  more 
leading  a  forlorn  hope  among  his  own 
people.  Great  questions  were  at  stake, 
great  principles  involved.  His  people's 
hearts  were  burning  with  a  sense  of 
injustice  intended  ;  and  he  was  called 
upon,  as  never  before,  to  exert  all  his 
powers  to  keep  them  still  until  they  had 
time  to  consider.  He  canvassed  the 
State  from  end  to  end,  carrying  every- 
thing before  him.  ^^Two  things  would 
always  bring  out  the  Texas  people,  a 
circus  and  Sam  Houston."  And  now 
party  combinations,  newspapers,  public 


SAM   HOUSTON  155 

men,  were  swept  out  of  sight  by  his 
impromptn  eloquence,  his  caustic,  con- 
temptuous invective.  Of  a  personal 
follower  who  had  forsaken  him  he  said  : 
'^  Don't  be  too  hard  on  him.  I  was 
always  fond  of  dogs,  and  he  has  all  the 
virtues  of  a  dog  except  his  fidelity." 
Senator  Wigfall,  who  followed  him 
about  in  this  campaign,  he  called  always 
''Wigtail,"  which  pleased  the  people 
wonderfully.  He  turned  the  Union 
minority  into  a  triumphant  majority, 
which  elected  him ;  and  nothing  could 
have  proved  more  clearly  a  man's 
power  than  to  have  been  elected  Union 
governor  of  an  excited  Southern  State 
in  secession  times.  He  was  inaugurated 
in  December,  1859,  and  found  himself 
facing  the  storm  he  had  prophesied. 

In  1860  there  were  four  tickets  in  the 
Presidential  field,  conflicting  and  confus- 
ing. The  excitement  in  Texas  was  in- 
creased by  the  burning  of  barns,  towns, 
cotton-gins,    and    mills,  believed  to  be 


136  SAM   HOUSTOI^ 

instigated  by  Abolition  emissaries  among 
the  negroes.  The  people  were  alarmed 
and  angry ;  and  meeting  after  meeting 
was  held,  for  and  against  secession.  In 
September,  Houston  got  out  of  a  sick- 
bed, to  address  a  Union  mass  meeting 
in  Austin.  ^^I  come  not  here  to  speak 
in  behalf  of  a  united  South  against  Lin- 
coln," he  said.  '^I  would  rather  appeal 
to  the  great  soul  of  the  nation  than  to  the 
passions  of  a  section.  .  .  .  The  error  has 
been  that  the  South  has  met  sectionalism 
by  sectionalism.  .  .  .  But,  if  through  a 
division  in  the  ranks  of  those  opposed 
to  Mr.  Lincoln  he  should  be  elected, 
we  have  no  excuse  for  dissolving  the 
Union.  The  Union  is  worth  more  than 
Mr.  Lincoln ;  and,  if  the  battle  is  to  be 
fought  for  the  Constitution,  let  us  fight 
it  in  the  Union  and  for  the  sake  of  the 
Union.  ...  If  Mr.  Lincoln  administers 
the  government  in  accordance  with  the 
Constitution,  our  rights  must  be  re- 
spected. If  he  does  not,  the  Constitution 
provides  a  remedy." 


SAM   HOUSTON  137 

He  strove  with  all  his  power  against 
secession,  and  in  Virginia  it  was  de- 
manded that  the  traitor  Houston  be 
tarred  and  feathered,  while  in  Georgia 
it  was  suggested,  ^^Some  Texan  Brutus 
may  arise  to  rid  his  country  of  this  old, 
hoary-headed  traitor." 

Lincoln's  election  was  the  signal  for 
secession  ;  and  Houston  at  once  called  an 
extra  session  of  the  legislature  January 
21.  The  lieutenant  governor,  however, 
called  a  convention  to  meet  on  the  28th, 
the  legislature  passing  an  act  recogniz- 
ing the  secession  convention  as  repre- 
senting the  people.  Houston  vetoed  the 
act,  the  retort  being  an  ordinance  of 
secession.  A  '^Declaration  of  the 
Causes  of  Secession"  was  sent  out.  A 
committee  of  safety  secured  the  United 
States  posts  and  arms ;  and  on  Febru- 
ary 4  the  convention  adjourned  to  meet 
again  on  March  2,  the  twenty-fifth  anni- 
versary of  Texan  independence,  the  day 
on  which  the  ordinance  of  secession  was 


138  SAM   HOUSTON 

to  take  effect,  if  ratified,  and  Houston's 

birthday. 

The  vote  stood  almost  three  to  one  for 
secession.  A  committee  was  sent  to  tell 
the  governor  that  by  the  will  of  the 
people  Texas  was  again  ^^a  free  sov- 
ereign and  independent  State/'  and  the 
16th  the  day  appointed  for  all  State  offi- 
cers to  take  oath  to  the  Confederate 
government  or  vacate  their  offices. 
*With  two  or  three  exceptions,  every 
secessionist  in  that  convention"  wished 
Houston  to  remain  in  office.  Mr.  Will- 
iams telb  us  that,  ^' when  the  day  came 
to  take  the  oath,  the  presiding  officer  of 
the  convention  called  three  times,  ^  Sam 
Houston,  Sam  Houston,  Sam  Hous- 
ton ! '  "  He  did  not  answer,  he  did  not 
come  J  and  the  lieutenant  governor  —  as 
Houston  expressed  it,  ^  ^  the  man  who  had 
ridden  into  office  on  his  coat-tails  — 
took  his  place."  ^^The  whole  thing," 
says  Mr.  Brown,  '^was  accomplished 
without  the  least  apparent  friction ;  and 


I 


SAM   HOUSTON  139 

a  few  days  later  Governor  Hou5tx)a  re- 
tired with  his  family  [wife  and  eight 
children]  to  his  home  in  Independence. ' ' 
It  has  been  said  that  Houston  would 
have  accepted  armed  aid  to  keep  Texas 
in  the  Union.  There  is  an  official  letter 
from  Houston  to  the  United  States  com- 
mander at  Indianola.  ^^  Allow  me  most 
respectfully  to  decline  any  such  as- 
sistance of  the  United  States  govern- 
ment, and  to  most  earnestly  protest 
against  the  concentration  of  troops  in 
Texas,  and  request  that  you  remove  all 
such  troops  out  of  the  State  at  the  earli- 
est day  practicable." 

To  the  people,  Houston  said  :  ^ '  I  love 
Texas  too  well  to  bring  civil  strife  and 
bloodshed  upon  her.  To  avert  this 
calamity,  I  shall  make  no  endeavor  to 
maintain  my  authority  as  chief  execu- 
tive. ...  I  protest .  .  .  against  all  the 
acts  of  this  convention,  and  declare 
them  null  and  void.  .  .  .  Think  not  that 
I  complain.  ...  It  is  perhaps  meet  that 


140  SAM   HOUSTON 

my  career  should  close  thus.  I  have  seen 
the  statesmen  and  patriots  of  my  youth 
gathered  to  their  fathers,  and  the  gov- 
ernment which  they  had  reared  rent  in 
twain,  and  none  like  them  left  to  re- 
unite it.  I  stand  almost  the  last  of  a 
race  who  learned  from  them  the  lesson 
of  human  freedom." 

He  refused  a  commission  as  major- 
general  offered  by  President  Lincoln. 
His  ^  ^  State,  right  or  wrong. ' '  He  loved 
his  section,  his  people,  and  fitted  out 
his  son  for  the  Confederate  service, 
though,  earlier  in  the  excitement,  he  told 
his  son  that,  instead  of  wearing  his 
secession  cockade  over  his  heart,  he 
should  wear  it  on  the  inside  of  his  coat- 
tail  ;  and,  when  it  came  to  a  question 
of  Federal  coercion,  he  threw  himself 
wholly  on  the  side  of  the  South.  The 
loves  of  Houston's  life  were  Texas  and 
the  Union.  He  had  found  Texas  a  home 
in  the  Union  :  he  had  carried  the  Union 
out  to  the  Pacific.     He  had  spent  the 


SAM   HOUSTON  141 

best  years  of  liis  life  in  this  work,  had 
endured  obloquy  and  physical  suffering 
in  the  doing  ;  and  now,  old  and  poor, — 
for,  to  his  honor  be  it  said,  he  had  neither 
made  nor  saved  one  penny, — he  was  put 
aside  to  wateh  while  his  work  was 
undone.  He  was  still  feared,  however, 
and  was  accused  of  plotting  with  the 
Federal  government,  and  also  of  medi- 
tating the  rehabilitation  of  Texas  as  a 
republic ;  and  the  Governor  of  Texas 
wrote  to  President  Davis  to  this  effect. 
Times  were  dangerous,  and  more  than 
once  Houston's  friends  felt  it  necessary 
to  arm  themselves  and  be  at  hand  when 
he  was  speaking  during  the  secession 
excitement ;  but  the  old  man  had  faced 
too  many  dangers  to  flinch  now,  and  he 
spoke  as  fearlessly  to  the  excited  crowds 
that  opposed  him  as  ever  he  had  spoken 
to  admiring  friends.  It  is  hard  to 
believe  that  any  one  in  Texas  would 
have  raised  a  hand  against  him. 

Martial    law    being    established,    an 


142  SAM  HOUSTOI^ 

official  demanded  Houston's  pass.  The 
old  man  answered  ^^San  Jacinto/'  and 
went  on  his  way.  His  last  speech  was 
made  in  March,  1863.  His  ankle,  broken 
at  San  Jacinto,  had  given  way :  the 
wounds  from  the  battle  of  Horseshoe 
Bend,  which  had  never  healed,  were 
troubling  him  ;  and  he  went  on  a  crutch 
and  a  stick.  ^^  Ladies  and  fellow-citi- 
zens," he  said,  ^^with  feelings  of  pleas- 
ure and  friendly  greeting  I  once  more 
stand  before  this,  an  assemblage  of  my 
countrymen.  As  I  behold  this  large 
assemblage,  who  from  their  homes  and 
daily  toil  have  come  once  again  to  greet 
the  man  who  has  so  often  known  their 
kindness  and  affection,  I  can  feel  that 
even  yet  I  hold  a  place  in  their  high 
regard.  ...  As  you  have  gathered  here 
to  listen  to  the  sentiments  of  my  heart, 
knowing  that  the  days  draw  nigh  unto 
me  when  all  thoughts  of  ambition  and 
worldly  pride  gave  place  to  the  earnest- 
ness of  age,  I  know  you  will  bear  with 


SAM  HOUSTON  143 

me,  while  with  calmness  and  without 
the  fervor  and  eloquence  of  youth  I 
express  those  sentiments  which  seem 
natural  to  my  mind  in  the  view  of  the 
condition  of  my  country.  I  have  been 
buffeted  by  the  waves  as  I  have  been 
borne  along  time's  ocean,  until,  shattered 
and  worn,  I  approach  the  narrow 
isthmus  which  diWdes  it  from  the  sea 
of  eternity  beyond.  Ere  I  step  forward 
to  journey  through  the  pilgrimage  of 
death,  I  would  say  that  all  my  thoughts 
and  all  my  hopes  are  with  my  coun- 
try.'' ... 

When  Yicksburg  fell  in  July,  1863, 
Houston  succumbed  ;  and  on  the  26th  of 
that  month  he  died  at  Huntsville,  Texas. 
He  had  said  in  1860  :  ^^My  sands  of  life 
are  fast  running  out.  As  the  glass  be- 
comes exhausted,  if  I  can  feel  that  I 
leave  my  country  prosperous  and  united, 
I  shall  die  content. ' '  But  this  was  not 
granted  him.  He  died  haWng  heard  of 
the  fall  of  Yicksburg,  and  he  knew  bet- 


144  SAM  HOUSTON 

ter  than  most  what  that  portended.  He 
died  leaving  his  eldest  son  wounded  and 
a  prisoner. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

After  the  year  1832  a  study  of  Gen- 
eral Houston's  life  is,  more  or  less,  a 
study  of  the  history  of  the  United  States. 
"Not  only  so,  but  the  search  for  causes 
could  take  one  back  rather  indefinitely. 
It  could  include  all  the  dealings  of 
the  United  States  government  with  the 
Indians.  It  necessarily  touches  on  the 
whole  question  of  expansion,  of  slavery, 
of  secession. 

For  the  history  of  Texas,  H.  Yoak- 
um's Sistory  of  Texas  (!N'ew  York,  1856  : 
Eedfield),  where  there  is  to  be  found 
much  important  official  correspondence, 
and  the  History  of  Texas,  by  J.  H. 
Brown  (St.  Louis,  1893  :  L.  E.  Daniel), 
would  be  necessarily  read  ,•  for  General 
Houston  himself,  the  Life  and  Literat-y 
Remains  of  Sam  Houston^  by  W.  C. 
Crane  (Philadelphia,  1884  :  J.  B.  Lip- 
pincott  &  Co.),  where  are  gathered 
Houston's  speeches  in  the  Senate  of  the 


146  BIBLIOGEAPHY 

United  States,  Ms  public  letters  and 
Indian  talks.  Sam  Houston  and  the 
War  of  Independence  in  Texas,  by  Alfred 
M.  Williams  (Boston  and  New  York, 
1893:  Houghton,  Mifllin  &  Co.),  is  a 
most  careful  study  and  an  interesting 
biography.  Sam  Houston  and  his  Eepub- 
lic,  by  C.  Edwards  Lester  (New  York, 
1846 ;  Burgess,  Stringer  &  Co. ),  Bem- 
iniscences  of  the  Texan  Eepttblic,  Ashbel 
Smith  (Galveston,  1876:  Printed  by 
Historical  Society),  Sam  Houston,  by 
Henry  Bruce,  in  the  ^^  Makers  of  Amer- 
ica'^  series  (New  York,  1891:  Dodd, 
Mead  &  Co.),  must  also  be  considered. 
In  connection  with  these  :  — 

I.  Political  Sketches  of  Eight 
Years  in  Washington.  By  E.  Mayo. 
(Washington,  1839  :  Garrett  Anderson. ) 

II.  Excursion  through  the  Slave 
States.  By  G.  W.  Featherstonehaugh, 
P.E.S.,  F.G.S.  (New  York,  1844: 
Harper  &  Brothers.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHT  147 

III.  Abridgment  of  Debates  in 
Congress.  By  Thomas  H.  Benton. 
(New  York,  1851  :  D.  Appleton  &  Co. ) 

lY.  Annals  of  Congress.  Gales  and 
Seatx)n.     (Washington,  1852.) 

V.  Life  of  Sam  Houston.  (New 
York,    1855:  J.  C.  Derby.) 

YI.  Life  of  Aaron  Burr.     By  James 

Parton.  (New  York,  1858 :  Mason 
Brothers. ) 

YII.  Life  of  Andrew  Jackson.  By 
James  Parton.  (New  York,  1860 : 
Mason  Brothers.) 

VIII.  Memoirs  of  John  Quincy  Ad- 
ams. (Philadelphia,  1874  :  J.  B.  Lip- 
pincott  &  Co.) 

IX.  Texas  Scrap  Book.  By  D.  W.  C. 
Baker.  (New  York,  1875:  A.  S. 
Barnes  &  Co.) 

X.  Anecdotes  of  Public  Men.  By 
John  W.  Forney.  (New  York,  1881 : 
Haj^er  &  Brothers.) 


148  BIBLIOGEAPHY 

XI.  Eeminiscences  of  Fifty  Yeaes 
IN  Texas.  By  J.  J.  Linn.  (Kew  York, 
1883:  D.  &  J.  Sadlier.) 

XII.  Memories  of  World-known 
Men.  By  Mrs.  M.  C.  Houston.  (Lon- 
don, 1883  :  F.  Y.  White  &  Co.) 

XIII.  Field  of  Honor.  By  Ben  C. 
Truman.  (Kew  York,  1884:  Fords, 
Howard  &  Hulbert.) 

XIY.  Henry  Clay.  By  Carl  Schurz. 
(American  Statesmen  Series.)  (Boston 
and  l^ew  York,  1887  :  Houghton,  Mif- 
flin &  Co. ) 

XY.  Tennessee.  By  James  Phelan. 
(American  Commonwealth  Series. ) 
(Boston  and  Kew  York,  1887  :  Hough- 
ton, Mifflin  &  Co.) 

XYI.  History  of  the  Pacifio 
States  and  Texas.  By  H.  H.  Ban- 
croft. (San  Francisco,  1889 :  History 
Company. ) 

XYIL     Great     Senators     of     the 


i 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  149 

United  States.  B}^  Oliver  Dyer. 
(Xew  York,  18S9  :  Robert  Bonner's 
Sons.) 

XYIII.  Texas  under  Six  Flags.  By 
M.  E.  M.  Davis.  (Boston,  1897  :  Ginn 
&  Company. ) 


The  beacon  BIOGRAPHIES. 

M.  A.  DeWOLFE  HOWE,  Editor. 


The  aim  of  this  series  is  to  furnish  brief,  read- 
able, and  authentic  accounts  of  the  lives  of  those 
Americans  whose  personalities  have  impressed 
themselves  most  deeply  on  the  character  and 
history  of  their  country.  On  account  of  the 
length  of  the  more  formal  lives,  often  running 
into  large  volumes,  the  average  busy  man  and 
woman  have  not  the  time  or  hardly  the  inclina- 
tion to  acquaint  them?elves  with  American  bi- 
ography. In  the  present  series  everything  that 
such  a  reader  would  ordinarily  care  to  know  is 
given  by  writers  of  special  competence,  who 
possess  in  full  measure  the  best  contemporary 
point  of  view.  Each  volume  is  equipped  with 
a  frontispiece  portrait,  a  calendar  of  important 
dates,  and  a  brief  bibliography  for  further  read- 
ing. Finally,  the  volumes  are  printed  in  a  form 
convenient  for  reading  and  for  carrying  handily 
in   the  pocket. 

SMALL,  MAYNARD  &  COMPANY,  Publighers, 
6   BiACON   Strmt,  Boston. 

[OVM.] 


The  beacon  BIOGRAPHIES. 


The  following  volumes  are  issued  :  — 

Phillips  Brooks,  by  the  Editor. 
John  Brown,  by  Joseph  Edgar  Chamberlin. 
Aaron  Burr,  by  Henry  Childs  Merwin. 
Stephen  Decatur,  by  Cyrus  Townsend  Brady. 
Frederick  Douglass,  by  Charles  W.  Chestnutt. 
David  G.  Farragut,  by  James  Barnes, 
Nathaniel  Hawthorne,  by  Mrs.  James  T.  Fields. 
Sam  Houston,  by  Sarah  Barnwell  Elliott. 

"Stonewall"  Jackson,  by  Carl  Hovey. 

Robert  E.  Lee,  by  William  P.  Trent. 

James  Russell  Lowell,  by  Edward  Everett  Hale,  Jr. 

Thomas  Paine,  by  Ellery  Sedgwick. 

Daniel  Webster,  by  Norman   Hapgood. 

The  following  are  among  those  in  preparation:  — 

Louis  Agassiz,  by  Alice  Bache  Gould. 
John  James  Audubon,  by  John  Burroughs. 
Edwin  Booth,  by  Charles  Townsend  Copeland. 

James  Fenimore  Cooper,  by  W.  B.  Shubrick  Clymer. 
Benjamin  Franklin,  by  Lindsay  Swift. 
Ulysses  S.  Grant,  by  Owen  Wister. 
Alexander  Hamilton,  by  James  Schouler. 

Father  Hecker,  by  Henry  D.  Sedgwick. 
Thomas  Jefferson,  by  Hon.  Thomas  E.  Watson. 


Henry  W.  Longfellow,  by  George  Rice  Carpenter. 
S.  F.  B.  Morse,  b\  John  Trowbridge. 
J.  G.  Whittier,  by  Richard  Burton. 


THE  WESTMINSTER    BIOG- 
RAPHIES. 


The  Westminster  Biographies  are  uniform  in  plan, 
size,  and  general  make-up  with  the  Beacon  Biographies, 
the  point  of  important  difference  lying  in  the  fact  that 
they  deal  with  the  lives  of  eminent  Englishmen  instead 
of  with  those  of  eminent  Americans.  They  are  bound  in 
limp  red  cloth,  are  gilt-topped,  and  have  a  cover  design  and 
a  vignette  title-page  by  Bertram  Grosvenor  Goodhue. 

The  following  volumes  are  issued:  — 

Robert  Browning,  by  Arthur  Waugh. 
Daniel  Defoe,  by  Wilfred  Whitten. 
John  Wesley,  by  Frank  Banfield. 

Many  others  are  in  preparation. 


SMALL,  MAYNARD  &  COMPANY,  PubUshers, 
6  Beacon  Street,  Boston. 


IJC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 

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B    000  013  700    0 


